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THE

GENERAL HISTORY

• or

INLAND NAVIGATION ;

COITTAIRIHO

A COMPLETE ACCOUNT OF ALL THE CANALS

OF THE

UNITED KINGDOM,

WITH THEIR VARIATIONS AND EXTENSIONS,

ACCOKOtNG TO THK

IkMENDMENTS CF ACTS OF PARLIAMENT TO JUKE igoj.

AHA

A BRIEF HISTORY

THE CANALS OF FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

BY JOHN JHILLIPS, Sen«-

ftOMKTIM^ HURYfiTOE TO THE CANALS IN RUSSIA UNDER
H&. CAMEROk, ARCHITECT TO THE LATE EMPRESS
CATHERINE II.

FOURTH EDITION,

aBsaaEsafeEssBass

LONDON:

PRINTED »T A!5D »OR C- AND R. ZALTi'W^, Of HEW

BRIDGE-STREET. *

1803.

I 3 03

%* TAm wo^j; having passed through three editions in quarto,
the Author has been advised, for the purpose of a still more
general circulation^ to abridge it of such matter as was least
useful; which has enabled Aim not only to reduce it to a
moderate price, but also to add a large quantity of new and
important information. He hax aUo given the plan of a lock
to save water, which will be found worthy of particular
attention in such places as are liable to a deficiency.

^ 5-/3; / - /^./

IPREFACE.

OTWITHSTANDING the gredt success and
ipprobadon which my History of Inland Navigation^
in one large volume quarto^ has met with, yet the
iexpense of such a work in such a form being neces-
sarily greats I have thought thati as every person^
whether ebgaged ih agrioilture or commerce^ is more
or less interested iii the inland navigation of the
country, an abridged edition, at a price within the
reach of almo^ every readeri could not fail to be
highly useful and accefitable:

In this edition, however^ though much of the
tnore unimportant part of my larger work has been
omitted, yet many con^derable additions and im-
provements have been made, and some errors have been
corrected, and upon the whole I think it will be
found as useful, and iti sonie respects even superior
to the original publication.

Notwithstanding the gredt and obvious advantages
which have been reaped from inland navigatipn in
every country whereit has been practicable by nature,
or rendered so by artj prejudices still exist against
it in the minds of many well meaning, though not
iHTftU informed, persons. To bring to the more

IT FXEVACB.

general knowledge of my countrymen the stapen^
dous labours which have been undertaken and ac-
complished by other nations, and the advantages
which have resulted from them, and to trace the
rise, the progress, and the consequences of our own
exertions in respect to inland navigation, are the
principal purposes of this publication. Many
schemes which have been proposed and afterwards
abandoned will here be found recorded^ and many
hints are thrown out Ivhich may prove of service to
future projectors.

My having been employed in England hy the
great Brindley, the &ther of English canals ;
having been a prisoner on parole for some years in
America; and having travelled, with a parncular
view to observation on the state of their internal
navigations, through Holland, Germany, and Poland,
to Russia, where I Was employed by the govern-
ment, will be allowed perhaps to furnish reasonable
pretensions to a proper knowledge of the subject.

No pains have been spared in the. collection of
materials ; I have availed myself of every act that
has passed the British Legislature oh this subject,
and also of every other publication within my know*
ledge that could furnish me with information of
any importance. I do hot, however, suppose but
that I have committed some mistakes ; but as this
kitid of improvement is yet only in its infancy, the
necessary information is more difficult to collect, and
errors are not so easily avoided ; and I shall con-

»SFACX. T

sider myself greatly obliged to any gentleman for
his friendly correction and information. I do not
pretend to attain to elegance, but have endeavoured
to be accurate and perspicuous ; to this praise alone
I aspire, and with a modest and well founded con-
fidence submit my performance to the judgment of
an impartial but candid public.

J. PHILLIPS^

JjOjji>o», July, 1803.

INTRODUCTION.

4- HE Utility pf inland navigation is now so gene-
rally acknowledged, and so satisfactorily proved by
the beneficial effects already derived 6x>m it, that
it seems scarcely necessary to say any thing on the
subject. The canal begun by the Duke of Bridge-
water in 1759, has so evidently shewn the great ad-
vantages to be derived from such works, and given
birth to so niany similar projects, that since that time
no less than ] 65 acts of parliament haye been passed
for making and perfecting canals, or for improving
the inland navigation of this country.

Inland navigation is highly beneficial to trade and
commerce, by facilitating the communication be-
tween widely distant parts of the kingdom, reducing
the price of carriage, and thus enabling the manu-
facturer to obtain his niaterials, fuel, and necessaries
pf life at a lower rate ; to convey his goods to mar-
ket at a less expense, and consequently to sell cheaper
than his competitors. In countries which have the
advantage of canals old manufactories are rendered
more flourishing, and new ones established from day
to day, in situations where, before, the land was but
pf little value, and but thinly inhabited. They
render the countries through which they pass more
righ and fertile; since every meadow and pasture
displays a verdure never seen in the withered and

1VT80DUCT10H. Vll

adust spots vAiich are at a distance from the. banks
of rivers and running waters. The merchants who
reside at the ports where they terminate must also
derive very considerable advantages from them, as
they are enabled to export greater quantities <^ goods
from places at a distance from the sea, and to supply
with ease a greater extent of inland country with the
comracxfities they import from foreign nations.

TAere are, perhaps, few objects of internal policy
tliat have so much called forth the powers and re-
sources of the country as canals. They have not
only been the means of enlarging our foreign com-
merce, but of giving birth to an internal ttade, which,
with all the advantages attendant on foreign , com-
merce, has perhaps far exceeded it in extent, value,
and importance. So great has been the effect which
these canals, and the trade to which they have given
birth, have had on our industry, population, and
resources, that in many instances they have entirely
changed the appearance of the counties through
which they flow.

The reasons of this changje are sufficiently obvi-
ous. As consumers, we are enabled by means of
canals to import more cheaply; as producers, we
export with greater facility. Do the materials of a
maHu&ctuce lie dispersed ? Canals unite them, and
at the same time supply the persons employed in it
with every necesss^ry at the cheapest rate ; and the
land owner, whether we consider the surface of the
s(nl, .or the mines in its bowels, necessarily finds his
advantage from new markets, and from having a
cheaper carriage both for his productions and bis
pianyre.

Viii . IVTRODUCTXOV*

The experiment has how been made for some
yeaxs^ and canals have been cut to an extent of
above 1000 miles» and in most cases to the advan-*
tag? of the public, even where they have not been
profitable to the individuals concerned in them. In
fome parts of the country prejudices still prevail j
^nd the popular objectidn, that inland navigation
tends to diminish the number of our seamen, ha$
frequently influenced the minds of those who were
not biassed by any particular private interest. In
some instances the coasting navigation may have
been lessened by them, (though this has not been
proved, and still remains doubtful) but in others it
has been increased ; and there can be no doubt that
a greater extension of our distant navigation has
arisen from a system which has, in effect, converted
the internal parts of our island into coasts.

To the cheapness t>f conveyance, compared with
land carriage, should be added the advantages at-
tendant pn an easy and secure communication of the
different parts of the country one with another, du*
ring the tempestuous months, and in times of war ;
when vessels from the northern parts of Europe will
readily make the Humber, whence, by means pf
canals, there is a communication with the rivers
Mersey, Dee, Severn, Avon,. Thames, &c. an ex-
tent of water carriage to the principal rivers, cities,
and sea ports exceeding 500 miles, intersecting 4he
whole interior part of the kingdom ; and by which,
merchandise may be imported and exported with
perfect safety from boisterous weather or obtruding
enemies. The greatest advantages may be also ex-
pected to result from safe and speedy communica-
tions betwei:n the east and west parts of this island.

INTRODUCTION. IX

by means of that grand undertaking the Forth and
Clyde navigation. And if the proposed canals
through the county of Hampshire should take place,
goods and stores of all Jcinds from the magazines of
London, Woolwich, &c. may then be certainly
conveyed to Portsmouth ; thereby avoiding a long
circuitous, ajid hazardous navigation. Similar advan-
tages wiii attach to many other places, which I shal^
not nov^ enumerate, as they will strike the eye an4
convince the judgment of every one who inspects
the map*.

The bargemen and boatmen, though they have
little experience in boisterous seas, are by no means
unacquainted with the art of loading and unloading
vessels, and frequently find their way into our sea^
ports, and thence on board our ships. But howevejr
Jittle inland navigation may be supposed to form
navigators for the sea, no lives arc; lost on the calm
.clement on which they are employed ; the diseases of
hot countries, so destructive to our seamen, are also
unknown to them ; and there is no danger of their
desertion, either in peace or war, to the service of
foreign states, our rivals and enemies. In short, if
the abundance of fresh water rivers and lakes in a
country have never been thought a detriment to its
navigation, but the contrary, there seems no reason
for supposing artificial inland navigations to be in
this respect at all more injurious. When the his-
tory of inland navigation and the spirit of industry
and commerce come to be better understood, and
popular prejudices decline, these objections will be
no longer urged.

^ Sce-Bowlei and Carver's Map of the Canals of England.

INTEODTJCTION.

There arc countries, in particular China and
Holland, that have systematically encouraged canals
and inland navigations at the public expense, neither
of them wanting weahh, population, or employ-
ment. France has not been deficient in public un-
dertakings of a similar nature. In England the
zeal of individuals has had a public sanction ; but
the undertakings have been conducted at private
expense. We build palaces for our public offices,
and lavibh immense sums in warlike preparations, more
frequently actuated by caprice and passion, than
guided by our true interests ; but we do not suffi-
cicntly cultivate those projects which would tend to
cherish industry, to produce wealth, and increase
real national strength. A time may come when
the general system of all governments may be
directed more to the encouragement of such pub-
lie undertakings as may promote population and the
prosperity of the country, than to the despicable
intrigues and destrucrive ambition of statesmen.

A highway, a bridge, or a canal may in most
cases be made and maintained by a small toll upon
carriages which make use of them ; a harbour, by
a moderate port-duty upop the tonnage of shipping
which load and unload in it. When the carriages
which pass over a highway or ^ bridge, and the
lighters and barges which pass on a navigable canal
pay toll in proportipn to their weight or their tonnage,
they pay for the maintaining those public works in
proportion to the wear and tear which they occasion.
A more equitable way of maintaining such works
cannot be found ; for the tax or toll, though ad-
vanced by the carrier, is finally paid by the con-
sumer, to whom it is charged in the price of his
2

\
\

INTBODUCTIOir. XI

goods. Canals, roads^ and bridges consequently
must he made where there is trade to support them.
' In several parts of Europe, the toll or lock-duties
of a canal is the property of some private person,
whose interest obliges him to keep it in proper re-
pair ; if not, the navigation ceases, and with it his
profit:, his principal as well as his interest is there-
fore at stake. There is this difference between a
high road and a canal, the road, if neglected, and
.offered to fall to decay, is not entirely impassable,
.whereas a catial is. When a navigable canal has
been once made, the management of it becomes
.quite simple and easy ; and with respect to the
making, it is reducible to strict rules and method ;
it may be contracted for at so much per mile and
per lock : such undertakings, therefore, may be, and
frequently are, very successfully managed by joint
stock conipsLnies.

Good roads, canals^ and navigable rivers, by dimi-
nishing the expense of carriage, put the remote
parts of a country more upon a level with those in
the neighbourhood of large towns ; they are on that
account the greatest of all improvements. They
encourage the cultivation of remote parts,* which
must always be the most expensiv9 circle of the
country, and thereby rents are much improved.
They are advantageous to towns by breaking up the
monopoly of the country in their neighbourhood ;
and they arc advantageous to all parts of the coun-
try ; for, though they introduce some rival com-
modities, they open many new markets for produce.

It is not more than 70 years ago that some of
the counties in the neighbourhood of London pe-
titioned parliament against the extenson of turnpike

XU INTAODUCTIOir.

roads into the remoter counties, becatli^ those re*
moter counties, it was pretended, from the cheapness
of labour, would be able to sell hay and corn
cheaper in the London tnarkets than themselves, and
would thereby reduce their rents, or ruin their cul-
tivation. Their rents, however, have risen, and
their cultivation has been improved since that
time.

All canals may be considered as so many roads of
a certain kind, on which one horse will draw as
much as thirty horses on ordinary turnpike roads^
gr on which one man alone will transport as many
goods as three men and eighteen horses usually do
on common roads. The public would be great
gainers were they to lay out upon the making every
mile of a canal twenty times as much as they expend
upon a mile of turnpike road ; but a mile of canal
is often made at a less expense than the mile of
turnpike, consequently there is a great inducement
to multiply the number of canals.

Bad roads, and a difnculty of communication be-
tween places remote from each other, occasion a kind
of sterility in a country, and render most things
mucli dearer and scarcer than they would otherwise
be ; and a nation placed in the most favourable cli-
mate, and blessed with the most fertile soil^ if it
bate bad roads, and be without the convenient
modes of convey-ance, wiH not be so rich and af-
fluent as one less favoured in climate and soil, which
shall have excellent roads and canals, supposing the
genius and industry of both nations to be the

^me.

When the Europeans first discovered America, the
Pcruviaas, who were to a certain degree a civilize

INTRODUCTION. XlU

tiarion^ had no other methods oj* transporting goods
and heavy materials but on porters' shoulders, or
by the force, of men's arms, and it has been supposed
that 2,000 of them have been employed in remo^ring
one stone; a wide difference from modern times,
when the improvements of mechanics in Europe will
cause the same to be moved by five or six men, and
with as /ittle laboui: transported many miles on a
canal/ The cities, towns, and villages in Holland
hare such a communication with each other by
water, that they appear like streets of the same city
in respect to the convenience of carriage ; and from
.every town of any size, at fixed times, passlge-
boats go from and to the neighbouring towns, con-
veying passengers and goods at cheap rates, and not
less certain than our stage coaches. Till these ad-
vantages are adopted on our English canals, I shall
not consider all the benefits to be received from
them, which may be reasonably expected. The
cheap and very pleasant conveyance by the Dutch
Trackskuyts are mentioned with satisfaction by all
travellers in that country ; in general the canals of
England pass through a country far more pleasant
and more varied with hill and dale ; the conveyance
would be safe, and the voyage, if I may so term it,
would, in the summer season, be enchanting, en-
joying motion without fatigue, and all the pleasures
of travelling at a very small expense.

Were we to make the supposition of two states,
the one having all its cities, towns, and villages, upon
navigable rivers and canals that have an easy com-
munication with each other, the other possessing
only the common conveyance of land-carriage
and supposing at the same time both states to be

XIT

INTRODUCTION*

equal as to soil, climate, and industrjr,^ cpnlmodittes
and manufactures in the former state might be ex*
pected 30 per cent, cheaper than in the latter, or ia
other words, the first state would be ^ third richer
and more affluent than the second. This perhaps
is one of the chief causey of the great wealth, of
China^ which historians tell us is wholly intersected
with navigable rivers and canals : Great Britain and
Ireland might soon rival China in this last particular^
and consequently their people in general might bt
more rich* and affluent*

There is yet one objection made to navigable
canals, which I have not noticed, viz. that they
waste or take up too great a portion of land in the
coimtries through which they pass ; but I hope it
will be a full and cogent answer to this objection^
that ONE MILE of a canal, 14 yards wide or broad^
takes up little more than five acres of land. l(
these then are the great advantages attending in-*
land navigation, and if the objections raised against
it are so weak, let us hope that the prejudices of thtf
uninformed will not prevent any of the great and
noble projects which yet remain to be e36ecutedv

INDEX

OP REFERENCE TO THE CANALS.

■■ saaassaaitt

APagc-

NC/ENT CaiuOt i

AndoYCT 254

^i4nindel • 273

Asbby^cla-Zouch 329

Ashton-nnder-LTDCy Oldham aid Manchester^ to amend and

extend 436

Aberdare , . « . 4 c)0

Aberdcenshiie 549

Aberdeenshire, to finish 552

Bti^ewater'Sy the Doke o^ Canal 83

Brindky's, Mr« Plan approved of the Grand Trunk Canal . . l6S

Ditto, into the Severn -. , l$3

Birmingham and Faaeley 204

Birmingham 257

Bimunghamy extension « . . . ^ 332

Bude to Laonoeston • 26l

Basingstoke 253

Basingstoke, to add and amend 239

Bamsley 288

Brecknock 491

China, Canals of 10

Coventry to Oxford oqq

Chester 256

Cbesteifidd 259

Coombe Hill 277

Cromford toLangley Bridge 284

Caistor • 289

Chdmer and filackwater 290

Croydon 474,

Cardiff to Merthyr Tidwell 489

Crinian • 547

Crinian, to amend , 551

XVI INDEX OF REFJ&fiENCE

Page. '

Denmark .• T 53

Droitwich 20&

Donnington Wood *. . . 285

Derby , 291

Dearne and Dove . . / 293

Deame and Dove, to amend 440

Dudley, extension 296

Dudley, to amend - 393

Dorset and Somerset 377

Dublin to the Shannon 562

Description of eleven Canals in Ireland 570

Egyp^ ^ *

England *. 84

Ercwash ; 259

Earl of Thanet's 264f

Ellesmere 297

EUesmere, to extend and vary . ; 38S

Ellesmdre, to vary and extend to Ruabon 390

Ellesmerci to alter, amend, and extend ^%

Ellesmere, to amend ^9

Explanation of the Plate of a Lock to save water 58^

France* Canals of 6l

Foss River 301

Foss River, to amend 471

Forth and Clyde 50*

Fort William 1 1 the Murray Frith ^^S

Grealey, Sir Nigel ^ 253

Gloucester and Berkley 302

Gloucester and Berkley, to vary . 403

Grand Junction 30*^

Grand Junction, altering, amending, and enlarging powera 3X0

Grand Junction, to vary in Hertfordshire 355

Grand Junction, to vary from Norwood to Paddington 357

Grand Junction, to finish , . .- 367

Grand Junction, new Articles • • 419

Grand Junction, to alter 467

Grantham 3 16

Grantham, to amend 398

Grand Western 37*

Grand Surry . : *.,..... 456

Glamorganshire ; • 493

TO THfi CANALS. XVll

Page.

O/enkciw •...!.. /..... 554*

Holland and Flanders * 50

Hindoostan • i « » • • 1^

Hoddmfi Mi I 237

Huddersfidd, to alter ; 333

Huddersfield, to ameod 445

Hereford and Gloucester ^ 266

Hereford and Gioocester^ to alter 319

Homcastle ^nd Lincoln 279

Hornctf5r7ei to amend 45!2

Has/ziigden » ; 335

Inffchcstcr to Langport 354

Ireland / 562

3anction of the Thames and Severn ; . * . . 209

Kington and Leominster 267

Ketlcy :. . . 2S5

Kennet and Avon * 336 — 37 1

Kennet and Avon, to extend and amend • 407

Kennet and Avon, to amend -, 453

Kidwelly 490

Liverpool to Hull, Mr. Whitworth's Plan rejected 114"

Liverpool to Hull, Mr. Brindley's Plan accepted and executed l65

London to Waltham Abbey 230

Leeds to Selby 234

Leeds and Liverpool 238

Leeds and Liverpool, to vary '...... 339

Leicester to Melton Mowbray 27'2

Leicester and Melton Mowbray, to amend 445

Leicester, to amend 402

Loughboroagh 284

Lewes 274

Lancaster 248

Lancaster, to extend 319

Lancaster, to vary and amend , 392

Lancastej^ to complete • 443

Leominster, to complete * * * . 384

Monkey Island to Reading. 222

Market Wcighton to the Humber ^ 262

Manchester to Bolton.and Bury . . . . , 270

Manchester and Oldkam 278

Manchcircr and Qldbam^ to amend 415

• ■ •

XVm INUEX 09 RBnUBKCE

Page.

Manchester^ to extend • .....•.•«... 320

Monmouthshire < « 275

Monmouthshire» to e:^|ilain and amend « 4)95

Monmouthshire^ to amende with rail-ways and tram-rpads . • 49&

Mersey and Irwel]> to bcorporate S4pO

Montgomery 340

Nutbrook 320

Newcastle.under-Lyne 353

Nevi castle-under^Lyne, Junction • 409

Nen River> to amend • 341

Neath, to amend .'..... • 411

Neath to Furno Vaughan ^^9

North America, Canals in «... 571

North Carolina, Canals in • • • • • 578

Oakham 321

Oakhan?, to alter and amend 44/

Oxford, to amend 342—419

Peak Forest 342

Peak Forest, to alter and amend 442

Polbrock 395

Russia 25

Reading to Isleworth 225

River Itchin 352

Rochdale 343

Rochdale, to vary and amend * • 437

River Trent, to amend 346

River Hull to Lcvcn Bridge 460

Remarks on all the Canals • 534

Sweden ' 42

Spain , • 76

Stroudwater to the Severn • • 215

' Sleaford 280

Stover 281

Sankey 283

Shropshire 286

Shrewsbury , 322

Stratford 323

Stainforth and Keadby ^ 325-

Stainforth and Keadby, to amend 417

Salisbury to Southampton and Northam, to alter and amend. . 450

Stovmarket and Ipswich ...,,... .'. . • 325

TO THE CAKALS. XIX

Page.

Stntf6rd.upoii.Avon into tbe Warwick and Birmingham • . 36S

Stiatford-upon- Avon, to amend 420

Somersetshire, into the Kennet and Avon 380

Somersetshire^ to vary, alter, and amend 484

Somerset : S45

Swansea 492

Scotland 504

Sooth America 581

Southampfwi and Salisbury 36l

Thames and Severn, to raise money ^. . . 369

Tajaar, 381

Ticnt and Mersey, to extend 400

Trent and Mersey, to vary and extend 405

Tonnd under the Thames from Gravesend to Tilbury 423

Thames and Medway 431

Trent and Mersey, to alter and amend 483

Ulverstone 326

Union , 326

Virginia 575

Winston, to Stockton on Tecs 255

'Worcester and Birmingham 269

Warwick and Birmingham 328

Warwick and Birmingham, to amend 370

Wyrlcy and Effington 278

Wyrlcy and Effington, to extend 347

Wilts and Berks ^. . . . . . 363,

Wilts and Bferks 462

Wisbech , 3^8

Welland, to amend 349

Warwick and Braunston 351

Wors]ey to Pennington 36O

Watfwd to St. Albans 366

Warwick and Braunston, to amend, and called Warwick and

Napton 387

Worcester and Birmingham, to amend 413

Wales , 488

ABRIDGED HISTORY

INLAND NAVIGATION.

S5SS9

SECTION I.

Utility of Inland Navigation — Ancient Canah-^Canah
of Egypt — Account of the great Canal cut through
the Isthmus of Suez, from DioJorus, Herodotus, and
Straho — Description -of the Nilometer, of Instrument
for measuring the Inundation of the River Nile*

X HAT the greatest advantages are derived by
mankind from navigation^ which establishes an inter^
coiirse between all the different inhabitants of the
earthy and enables them to supply their mutual wants^
by exchanging their mutual productions^ is a position
which no one will dispute. To the improvements
made in that most useful art are the commercial
nations of Europe principally indebted for their supe-
riority over the rest of the world in power and opu-
lence, the consequence of their extensive trade^ and
the flourishing state of their manufactures.

But what the ocean is to the distant countries
which it divides, navigable rivers and canals are to
the different provinces and districts oC the same

2 INLAND NAVIGATION.

country ; and as navigation on the former efFects an
intercourse and mutual exchange of productions
between different kingdoms, in like manner inland
navigation facilitates a communication between^ and
consequently promotes tradfc and industry in the diffe-
rent parts of the same kingdom. It seems, indeed,
totally unnecessary at present, to attempt to enumerate
the great benefits that accrue to trade and commerce
from inland navigation. There is scarcely any civi-
lized people, either ancient or modern, but have
borne testimony to the utility of canals, by executing
works of that kind.

Among the nations of antiquity, Greece, the
mistress of the world in arts and science, did not
want canals, that country being every where bounded
and indented by the jEgean and Ionian seas, with
their numerous bays, havens, creeks, and rivers;
yet history informs ils of many projects and under-
takings of canals which were never completed.—
Demetrius, Poliorcetes, Julias Caesar, and the Em-
|)erors Caligula and Nero attempted, in vain, to cut
through the Isthmus, by which Peloponnesus is
joihed to the rest of Greece, and thus form a com-
munication between the ^geah and Ionian seas.
We alio find traces of ckrials cut 'to drain off the
waters of the lake Copais, in Boeotia, of such re-
ihiote antiquity, thiat all knowledge of the time when
they Were rtiade have now been lost for many ages.
The following is the- account given of them by the
ingenious and learned Abbe Barthelemy, in his tra-
vels of An'acharsis, the younger.

" Boeotia may be cohsidered as a large bason sur-
itdunded by mountains, thte differtint chains of ifhiA
ire connected ^ -high gfotmds. Offler hiHt ^ttetch

iiita tKe heart of tbe country; most of the rivers that
proqcc^ from thiem UDitQ ip Lake Copais, which is
abo^t forty-three English miles in tircumference, and
which onther haa i]or i;an have any apparent is^ue ;
it would, therefore, soon over^o\^ BoBotia^ had not
the industry of man contrived secret passages to
dxaio oiF the water^ In the part adjoining to the
sea the hkc terminates in three bays^ which advance
to tfac fcot of Mount Ptous, situated between the
se$ and the lake* From the bottom of each of
these l>ays diverge a number of canals, that traverse
the mountain its whole breadth, being more than
three miles in length, and others a much greater
extent To excavate or cleanse them, very deep
vrells have been sunk, at stated distances, on the
mountains.

** The traveller, when he views these works, is
astonished at the difficulty c^ the enterprise, as well
as the expense it must have cost, and the time re*
quisite for its completion* But what is still more
surpris'mg is, that the^e canals and pits, of which
neither history nor tradition have preserved any
remembrance, must be attributed to the most remote
antiquity, and that in those distant ages we have no
knowledge of any power in Boeotia capable of form-
•itfcg and executing so vast a project/*

Rome, more attentive to enslave the world by
conquest, than to extend her commerce or improve
the arts, affords us no examples of canals for inter-
nal navigation; but her magnificent aqueducts,
though not strictly within the plan of the present
work, deserve to be mentioned. These were con-
structed, at an immense expense, for the conveyance
of water to that 9ch ^nd populous city. iSome of

B 2

4 , INLAND NAVlOAtlOl*';

them were of sJtotie, others of brick, afid otH^rs of
wood ; some conveyed the Water tinder ground, and
• others above it, supported by arches of prodigious
solidity, beauty, and grandeur } and of the latter,
some are recorded to have extended one hundred
miles in length. Frontinus, a man of consular dig-
nity, who had the direction of the aqueducts, under
the Emperor Nerva, tells of nine which emptied
themselves through 13,594 pipes, of one inch dia-
meter ; and Vigenere observes, that Rome received
from these aqueducts no less than 5CX),000 hogsheads
of water every twenty-four hours.

In the year 17 89 the eanal which was cut by the
Emperor Claudius to drain the lake 'Fucine into the
river Liris, was begun to be cleansed, to the great
relief -of the neighbouring country, which was inun-
dated by its obstruction.

Egypt, depending entirely on the overflowing of
the river Nile for the watering of the countr}^, con-
tained a great number of canals, dug to receive and
distribute the waters of that river at the time of the
inundation ; but the principal work of this kind, in
that country, was the Grand Canal, by which a com-
munication was made between the Nile and the Red
Sea. This was begun, according to Herodotus, by
Necos, the son of Psammeticus, who desisted from
the attempt on an answer from the oracle, after
having lost 120,000 men in the attempt. Diodorus
Siculus gives the following account of this canaL

" A canal of communication has been cut, which
passes from the Gulph of Pelusium into the Red Sea.
It was begun by Necos, son of Psammeticus, and
continued by Darius, king of Persia ; tyut at length
hid aside by the advice of some persons, who asserted

^t 4t would lay Egypt under water, ^because the
hnd w^as bcjow the level of the Red Sea. Ptolemy II,
howjevcr, finished the undertaking ; but constructed
in the most convenient part of the canal i dam
or sluice J ingenioiwly. contrived, which opened to
give pa^sag'e, ajid immediately closed again; on
that acGoum the river which discharges itself into
the sea, near the city of Arsinoe, has received the
name o/" Ptolemy's River.**

This canal was wide* enough for two galleys to
pjss abreast, and four days sailing in length ; ai^d
was far superior^ for utility^ dimensions, and trade;, tq
any other canal in the then , known world. The
wealth of India, Persia, Arabia, and the kingdoms
on the coast of Africa, were brought by shipping, to
the Red Sea, and by this vast canal conveyed to' the
Nile, whence it was distributed by the Mediterranean
not only to Greece and Rome, but to all the sur**
roufldiog nations^ until the Portuguese discpve^ed a
way to India by the Cape of Good ^ope.

This canal, after the time of Ptolemy, fell into
disuse, and policy had probably some share in. the
neglect of it ; but it was again opened in the year
635, under the Caliph Omar. Eimacin, indeed, say$
that a new canal was .^hen made for the conveyance
of the corn of Egypt to. Arabia f but this is more
naturally to be understood of the^ renewal of the
ancient one, the navigation of.^Jiiph, towards the
decline of the Roman empire, had bqe^ much neg-
lected* The sanie author adds, tijiat it was stoppe4
again, at tli.* end next the Red Sea^ by tl^e Caliph
Abugia, or Almanzoi^ the second o(, the i^ily^ of
Abbas, in the year of the hegirajfO, ^ansi^rciring tp

* One bondred cubits, of 22 inches to a cabit.

•ti

6 ivfLifb Wi^lfeftMoir;

the ycir oT Christ 775- Thcr* krt isotete fhrtfc* 4t
it still «ubsistiqig. M. Boutier, in 1707, d\$€&fiYiii
thfe ^nd which rises out of the most easterly tiHtfifeh
of the Nile.

Abulfcda thus describes tlic t>eauty of th* curilfl
pf Fabua t-i^* No prosptect can be more efifithiftt-
ing or agtciwble ; gardens, jgroves, Und itk^toA Vrfr^
dure ttdorn ih banks, which tttc'shaded by date^Ses,
covered with vines, and etnbfellished with ^le^iiit
hbijses/' The above canial Was cut -ffoiH the iJilc
to Alexandria, by Ptolefhy, to fill the ihimense
fcistems which arc vaulted witb griat isirt, "dtiS ctfti-r
sthicted in aU jiarts of that fcity. The vmtfoih
magnificent adiid3uct!s ate still almdstetotiite,*altlibiigh
<?hey-aiiB ibovc 2000 years old ; most of them afc
JibW^sfeleiss, and- have been 'so for hiahy agrt. -
' "Btribo tells us ttiat'tlie can^l bctWeeii AlcJ^ancJrm
and Cariopus, in which was ^a temple of SiripJi, iviats
fojEiaed liight and day wjth bdits, which carried reK-
gious votaries to the ^eity; this ianal is rfolv dry,
Deirodotus also says, that the stdnes for the bttildin^
ipf'the teniple of Latona, in Egypt, Were ^bfotrght
By rafts down the canals bffBe>iyer*Nile, "a di^taniie
of ^200 leagues. He meastlrtd one single 'stone,
which was Cofeet long, and six feet thick, 'and
which wa^ intifnded foF a' pf^ilstal for a coltlnin fiifty
feet Irigk, she feet diahjetifr, ^iM-Mso 'tut 'oiit of cfrie
tfiriglc 'bkKfk pf ^fetorid ' ^

• ; The lirihtwa^liAjndanbii? of flie Nfle afe •tbe'«6fanrc
Jfe^rthe ferftlfty'^'P^j^t^ '^hen the waters' Have
Visentlo'-a'fce'rtain* height, flic Ithalig,'dF^*aid danal,
^ dfreiiedjVy Whitb thty itp coiivej^edby a' t)r6aigIous
^f^umbf r tif ^SmflJ cariil^ into lirteVvoirs arfd dstdrns,
to be distributed .among the fields and ^rdens as

mated. To 4i«ovcr when they have ^Waincd this
lieight, ft piUar, called a l^ibpigter, is ^pfipctcjj in ^a

island opposite iGrapd Ca^P^ apd 4\vid^4 ^^^ f^^^h
a measure of abo)tf two feet. The fiplj^pY^ing is ^
accouat pf it, ^ giVcii by Raron Tqtj.

^ The progress of the inundatip^ ijs observed at
ifae I^Jilometer, situalCed i^t.the southern point of the
idand of ilhoda, opposite Old Cairo ; public criers^
d'lstnbufied in /every quarter of the qipita^^ every day
make known to.the people t^e ri^g ff£ the l^aters^
fill they are coove .t» ihe Jbpight pi;<?Rer fpv opening
4ihc cajoal by which they ai;e cpn;yeyp^JtO|the middlp
0f the .city jand the . ci^ter^s* ^ut jthis mpmec^t
.cannot be ob^taioed j^ij^h preQisdQn, because super-
stition ipnevencs thp ^eye^pf .curiQsityifr?pi approach-
ing the graduated cpluntii placed in the centre of
the ba&on of the iNUooie^er. J^he /cry of aof-aflak,
which 'Signifies God has,^ept,his,p;pi;njse, proclaixM
the opeoing of this, caiuil. )Clul4F4^,n: ^e^ring stream-
ers cf di&rent coloujis itccompiMiy the crier^ . an)!
diffiise a general joy .at the. fert^in^y. of plenty.
vi "Sultan Selim, after .having ponqperpd Egypt,
gave ir laws, , estabUsbed ,a ^Wrform of government,
,and decreed that this kin^oqi, now beconie a pro-
vince of his vast. enjpjre^sbpyJd. be. liable to a tribute
only when the increase pf . the Nile ^hpuld be suifi-r
dent for opening t]be cao^l; ^, infant, it is,- then only
that the .waters are sufficient for the, service of agri-
culture. This- takes pl^e every yc?ir. Put it is iJ9t
mcirely this degcee. of increase that yiel43 the greatest
plenty;. to produce , that, . the .w^^jTs n>i^t reach tp
•the foot of the mountains ; ^and ^hen it; is that the

eriers -^rochkn .rnhd^geiellrilr^gAkfih " Frcm 04e
mouotaiti^to; another/* *

8 fKLAHTD NAVraATION.

'' The ancient Egyptians had the barbarous cus-
tom of sacrificing a young girl to the Nile, when
the waters rose to a sufficient height for opening this
icanal. They call her the ardossa, or the bride ; and
the name and ceremonies of this sanguinary festival
are still preserved, though the Caliph Omar has ren-
dered it more consistent with humanity, by substi*
tuting a pillar of earth and clay^ which is made to
represent the victim, and is thrown into the Nile*
The principal inhabitants of Cairo appear at this
ceremony in their gondolas, richly ornamented ; and
it is always succeeded by entertainments and fire-
works. A great number of other canals, taken care
of by those only who derive advantage from them,
issue from that arm of the Nile which nins to
Damietta, and fertiliae the province of Sharkia,
which, making part of th« Isthmus of Suez, is the
most considerable of Egypt, and the most capable
of a great increase of cultivation. The plains of
Gaza, which lie. beyond, and are possessed by the
Arabs, would not be less fertile, if the spirit of
"^ devastation did pot destroy even the spontaneofb
productions. A number of other canals run through
the island of Delta, many of which are navigable i
and that of Manoof, or Meneuf, communicates with
the two branches of the NHe, tta leagues below the
angular poiht called tia belly of the ccw. This
canal begins at Nadir, and not at Gueseid, where
•EKAnville has placed its mouth, and crosses tHe pro-
vince of Manusia, the cultivation of which may be
' cofnpareJ to 4 well managed' kitchen garden-
* "' The- Vestiges of the canals which watered the
provinces westwarfi and ea^ward of the Delta prove
f hem to have been the best cultivated o£ any part pf

INLAMB NATIOATIOK* ^

ucient Egypt; we may also presume^ from the
extent of the ruins of Alexandria, the construction
of the canal, and the natural level of the lands
which encompass the lake Mareotis, and extend
themselves westward to the kingdom of Barca, that
this country, at present given up to the Arabs, and
almost a desert, was once sufficiently rich in produc-
tions of every kind to furnish the city of Alexandria
with its wholjc sabsisteno:/*

The valuable discoveries within these few years,
by proper persons employed by the commanders of
the French and English armies, will greatly enrich
the discoveries heretofore made public, as soon as
they can be properly arranged and published. ^

30 IirC»A«m KA^lOATiOlfA

I >

• t

SECTION II.

^ Dfistr^iim cfthe Canah ofChim ^nJ HinJoQstan,
andihfi frwiigious Tr4\de carried onhy th^m ff-^^

., *ke fiemomt P,ar4 of 4he £mfir£.' JSelecttd front
the best approved Authtyriiies.

CHINA.

In the. great empire of China there is .scarcely a
town, or even a village, which has not the advantage
cither of an arm of the sea, a navigable river, or a
canal ; by which means navigation is rendered so
common, that almost as many people live on the
water as on land.

The Great Canal, which is also called the royal
canal, is one of the wonders of art ; it was finished
about the year 98O ; and 30,000 men of all deno-^
minations were employed forty-three years in com-
pleting it. It runs from north to south, extending
from the city of Canton to the extremity of the
empire ; and by it all kinds of foreign merchandise,
entered at that city, are conveyed directly to Pekin,
being a distance of 825 miles. Its breadth is about
fifty feet, and its depth a fathom and a half, which is
sufficient to carry barks of considerable burthen,
which are managed by masts and sails, as well as by.
oars ; and some of a smaller sort are towed by hand.
The Emperor of China is said to employ 10,00O
ships, abating one, . (for a reason very peculiar).
This canal passes through, or near, forty- one large
i cities ;

cSties t it has 5eventy-JSve larg^ slxncc^ to keep
up tlite water, aaid pass thie barks and ships wheit
the ground ^11 not admit of sufficient depth of
channel ; besides several thousands of draw and
other bridges. Iimumerable canals are eut from this
mam canal ; and the whole empire abounds with
rivers, lakes, and rivulets.

Chins owes the greater part of its riches and fer-
iflity to these numerous canals, which are of thfe
jTcate^t utility for the transportation of the produce
and merchandise of one province to another. They
"ftre bordered or faced with quays of freestone; and
in low miKrshy places v^ry long causeways are raised
for the convenience of travellers. These canals aft
cut through any kind of private property, gardens,
plantations, or pleasure grounds ; not even the gar-
dens of the Etnperor, or any of his mandarins, or
governors, are exempted ; but when the work arrives.
5st the garden or pleasure ground, the governor, *dr
even the Emperor himself, digs the flfst spade df
earth, and pronounces with an audible V(ric€, «< This
is to let those of inferior situations know that no
private pleasure shall obstruct the public good.**
There are bridges over these canals 'of three, five,
seven, or more ardies, to open a free communication
with the country; the middle arth is, in general,
very high, that barks And barges may pass under
it with their masts standing. When the water is
high and liable to overflow the neighbouring fields,
they t^ke Care^to open the sluices, to convey it away,
and to keep it at a certain height in the canal. There
arc iii6!pect*rs appointed to survey the canal, and
visit it fontinually, and worktnen always ready to
fppair anjr damaged places,

li INLAND NAVIGATION;

And here I must mention one circdmataAce in
^htch it would not be beneath the magistrates of
this country to imitate the example of the Chinese.
In the whole of this great empire of China it is an
established maxim, that when a crime of ttiagnitude
is committed, the mandarin, of the province shall be
punished, because the law commands him to take
care of the morals of the people. As God has given
to every coimtry the means of subsistence, it is a
high oifence to magistracy that men should commit
crimes through distress. . The criminals ai'c obliged
to work Qn the canals for i^ time, accardii>g to their
seVejial offences ; they wear a disgraceful dress, and
arc allowed only a bare support of ordinary proi^isions.

F. Magaillane assures us,, that there is a passage by
inland navigation from one end of the empire of
China to the other, being a space of 600 French
leagues, and that a traveller may go this whole dis-
tance entirely by canals and rivers, except one single
day's journey by land, to cross a mountain ; an ad van*
. tage which this Jesuit, who made the voyage him-
selfj observes, is not to be found in any other king«-
'dom or state in the known universe.

The Ahb6 Grosier observes, that it is recorded in
the annals of China, that their emperors gave every
encouragement to agriculture, and thought it far
superior to gold, silver, or precious stones. One
particular, says he, deserves notice. About the
year 1500 a merchant had opened a mine of precious
stones (diamonds). As soon as it was known to the
Emperor, he caused it to be shut up, with this obser-
"vation — " Useless labour causes sterility, a mine of
precious ^tones does not produce corn/*

INLAND NAVIGATION* IS

.For several of the prcceeding observations oil
China I am obliged to Father Du Halde. The fol*
lowing are extracted from the journey of Loui$ le
Comte, the Jesuit^ who was above ten years a missi-
onary, and travelled through the whole empire of
China.

" Although China were not of itself (says he)
so fruithl a country as I have represented it^ the
csmals which are cut through it would be alone
sQ^cient to make it so ; but besides their great use-
fulness . in watering the country, and promoting
trade, they also add greatly to its beauty. They
generally contain a clear, deep, and running water,
which glides so softly that it can be scarcely per-
ceived. There is commonly one in every province,
which answers the purpose of a road, and runs be-
tween two banks, built up with flat coarse marble
stones, bound together by others which are jointed
into them.

" One large canal generally runs through every
province, and a vast number of smaller ones arc cut
from the large one, which again are divided into
some still smaller, or rather rivulets, which end at
some village or great town; sometimes they dis-
charge themselves into a lake or large pond, from
which all the adjacent country is watered, so that
these clear and plentiful streams, embellished by a
great number of fine bridges, bounded by neat and
convenient banks, equally distributed through vast
plains, covered with a multitude of boats and barges,'
and crowned (if I may use the expression) with a
prodigious number of towns and cities, whose ditches
they fill, and whose streets they form, at once ren-

14 XKliAKO KATI0A7I0H.

lender tlntt country the most finutfiil and Siosf
beautiful in the world.

'^ Surprised, and as it were astonished, at so noble
a sight, I have sometimes borne a secret envy to
China in behalf of Europe, which certainly can
boast of nothing in that kind to be compared to the
works of the Chinese. What would it be then, if
that art, which in the wildest and most unlikdy
places has raised magnij^ei^t palaces, gardejis, and
groves, had been employed in that rich land to
which nature has been so lavish of her most precious
gifts ?

" The Chinese say their country forcnerly was
totally overflowed, and that by dint of labour they
drained the water, by cutting it a passage through
these useful canals. If this be true, I cannot enough
admire, at once, the boldness and industry of their
workmen, who have thus made great artificial rivers,
and from a kind of sea created the most fertile plains
in the world.

" It will scarcely be believed that men so ignorant
in the principles of physics, and the art of levelling,
could bring such works as these to perfection ; yet
it is certain that these canals were dug by o^n,
for they are usually straight, and their distribution
is equal and orderly. There are floodgates made for
the rivers to let in their water, and others to let it
out when too full ; so that it cannot be doubted but
that the Chinese are indebted to their own industry
only for their great convenienp es.

." Among all those canals in the southern provinces
is one above the rest called the Great Canal, because
it traverses the whole country from panton^ which
lies on the southern side, to Pekin, which is situated

in the nortbcm part of the empire. We need only
travel a short dory's journey to cross the moufxtaiiv
called Moilin, which on oBe side bounds the pro-
vince of Kiaimi. Two rivers rise in this mountain^
one of which runs southward to the sea, and the
other northward as far as the river of Nankin^ whence,
by the Yeflow River, and several canals, we may pro^
cced by rater to the very mountains of Tartary.

'^ &it since, in thi^ vast extent of grouml, of
alK)re 400 leagues ip length, the earth is not level,
or hatfi not a descent proportionable to the emana^
k\on of the waters^ it was necessary to construct a
great number of sluices. They arc called by the
tiame of sluices in the relations of travellers, not*-
withstanding they are very different from ours ; they
are rather water*falls> and,. as it were, torrents, which
are precipitated from one canal into another^ and
mone or less rapid, according to the difEbrence of
their level. . To cause barks or barges to ascend,
they make tise of a great company of men, who are
maintained for that purpose near the sluice; after
they have drawn cables and ropes to the right and
left, to lay hold of the barge in such a manner tfa^
ft cannot escape them, and every cable and rope is
made tight, they have several capsterns, by help of
t^vbich they raise it by little and little, by exerting
the latmost strength of their arms, ^and employing
levers till they have raised it into the upper canal, in
which it continues its voyage. This labour is tedi«
ous, toilsome, and exceedin^y dangcroua* .They
would be . wonderfully surprised could tbey behold
with what ease and facility one m:an alone, who opens
and shuts the gates of our locks and sluices in Europe,

}6 IKLARD KAVIGATIOK.

makes the longest and heaviest laden bai^ and
barks securely to ascend and descend*

" I haye observed in some places in China, where
the waters of two canals have no. communication,
yet they make the boats pass from one into the other,
notwithstanding the level may be different fifteen
feet : to effect which they proceed in the following
manner. At the end of the canal they have built
a double glacis, or sloping bank of freestone, or
rather two inclining planes, which, uniting at the
point, extends itself on both sides up to the surface J

of the water. When the bark is in the lower canal
they hoist it up, by the help of capsterns, to the
plane of the first glacis, so hc^ till being raised to
the point, it &lls back again, (falls forward, I sup-
pose) by its own weight, along the second glacis,
into the water of the upper canal, where it skuds
away at a considerable distance, like an arrow
out of a bow ; and they make it descend in the same
manner proportionably. I cannot imagine how
these barks, being commonly very long and heavy
laden, escape being split in the middle, or their
backs broken, when they are poised in the air upon
this acute angle; for, considering the length, the
lever must have a strange effect upon it : yet we do
not hear of any accidents happening in consequence
of it. I have passed that way several times, and all
the precaution they take, when they do not chuse to
go on shore during the operation, is to tie themselves
fast to some cable or rope, for fear of being tossed
from stem to stern, or from poop to prow.

" We meet with no such sluices in the grand
canal, hecause the Emperor's barks, that are as larg^
as our frigates, could not be raised sufficiently bjf

UPLAND KAVIGATlbN. 17

force^ without being infallibly split or back broken
in the fall. All the difficulty consists in surmount-
ing these torrents, of which I have spoken : yet this
is what they perform successfully^ though not with*
put some trouble aad expence.

.** These water passages, as they call them, are
necessary for the transportation of grain and stuffs^
which they fetch from the southern provinces, and
carry to Pekin^ their capital. There arb, if we may
^ give credit to the Chinese, QQQ barks, from 80 to
lOO tons each, that make a voyage once a year, all
of them freighted for the Emperor, without men-
tioning those of particular persons, which are innu-
merable. When these prodigious fleets set out, one
would imagine that they carried the tribute of all
the kingdoms of the East, and that one of these
voyages alone was capable of supplying all Tartary
with a sufficiency for its subsistence for a number of
years. JBut Pekin alone receives the benefit of it,
and this would be scarcely any, did not the provinces
beside contribute to the maintenance of this vast
city, the circumference of which is six great leagues,
allowing 3600 paces to a league, and contains, at
least, 2,000,000 of people ; and it has been judged
to contain not less than 6,000,000 of souls, and that
the above 2,000,000 are only men, without reckon*
jng women and children. But the exact number is
very difficult, if at all, to be ascertained.

*^ The Chinese not only make canals for the con-
venience of travellers, but they also dig many others
to catch the rain water, which comes down from the
mouotains, and with which they water the fields in
time of drought, more especially in the nonhern
prwinces. During the whole summer you may see

1.8 INLAND NAVIGATION.

the country people busied in raising thi$ water inta
abundance of small ditches or channels, which they
cut across the fields. In other places they contrive
large reservoirs of turf, the bottom of which ia
raised above the level of the ground about it, ta
serve thefti it cases of necessity ; besides, they have
every where in the provinces of Xensi and Xansi, for
want of rain, certain pits from twenty to one hun-
dred feet deep, from which they draw water with
incredible labour. If, by chance, they meet with
a spring of water, it is worth observing how care-
fully they husband it ; they sustain it by banks in
the highest places ; they turn it here and there, a
hundred diftcrent ways, that all the country may
reap the benefit of it ; they divide it by drawing it
by degrees, according as every one has occasion for
it; insomuch that a small rivulet, well managed,
sometimes dispenses fertility to a whole province.'*

Tliat which most charms the eye is the immense
number of large boats with imperial colours, and
beautifully painted; that sail in fleets, and com-
manded by a single manderin of the province, and
loaded with its best productions, and chiefly on the
Emperor's account. There are several classes or rates
of these boats, very neat and commodious ; a middle
sized one has a hall and four very convenient rooms,
besides a good kitchen and place for the attendants ;
the rooms are generally neatly carved, painted,
and gilti even the ceiling is painted, and the whole
varnished ; some of these boats are of 200 tons
burthen, and from 300 to 400 of them on the same
canal at the same time, and sometimes in one fleet ;
and by the clearness add well governing of the canals,
it is rendered the most pleasant and fertile country

INJJLKD NAVIGATION. ^ IQ

ia tlic world. Their cities are immensely Urge and
populous, and when you have passed through one
city one could scarcely expect to find another so
large and populous; but before being well out of
sight of the one you arc in view of another as
large, or perhaps larger ; and both Du Halde and
Lc Comte, and R Magallanc and Abbe Grosier
aver that there arc 2357 cities and fortified towns in
the fifteen provinces of China, and 59 millions of
me/J. A Ute traveller says there is 120 millions of
i/7/)abitants.

The Chinese junks are strong roomy vessels, from
200 to 200, and some 300 tons burthen ; the hold
below deck is divided into several distinct apart-
ments, partitioned off with two inch plank, grooved
or rabbeted as close as possible, and the joints or
seams are caulked with a cement of lime, pitch, &c«
prepared in such a manner as to render it perfectly
water tight. A junk may strike against a rock and
not sink ; a leak may be sprung, but will damage no
further than the goods in that apartment.

To the above accounts of the canals of China, I
shall now add some description of those in other
parts of Asia, which I doubt not, will be highly
acceptable to the curious enquirer on this subject,
as it tends to shew the skill and intelligence of the
natives of that quarter of the globe, their ideas of
the advantages of inland navigation, and with what
industry they have laboured to promote conunerce
by its means. The following account of the canals
and inland navigation of Hindoostan, or the Mogul
Empire, more commonly known by the name of
Bengal, is extracted from Mr. Reancl's Memoirs of
Hindoostan, published in 1789.

10 INLAND NAVIGATION.

" The countries between Delhi and the rivet
Panzab, being scantily supplied with water, the
En:iperor Ferose III. undertook the noble, as well
a? useful task, of supplying it better, and at the
same time meant to apply the water, sb furnished,
to the purposes of navigation. Dowl (vol. i. p. 327)
translates Ferishta thus : —

* In the year 1355, Ferose marched to Debalpour,
where he made a canal 100 miles in length, from
the river Suttuluz to the river lidger. In the fol-
lowing year, between tlie hills Mendouli and Sir-
more, he cut a canal from the river Jumma, which
he divided into seven streams, one of which he
brought to Hassi, and from thence to Beraisen,
where he built a strong castle, calling it by his own
name. He drew, soon after, a canal from the river
Caggar, passing by the walls of Sirsutti, and joined
it to the river of Kera, upon which he built a city
named after him, Feroseabad ; this city he watered
with another canal from the river Jumma. These
public works were of prodigious advantage to the
adjacent countries, by supplying them with water for
their lands, and with a commodious water-carriage
from place to place.'

" We learn also from the AyinrAcbaree (vol. ii-
p. 107, English translation) that Ferose founded the
ciiy of Hissar, called also Hissar-Feroozeh, and dug
a canal from the river Jumma to it ; and we find,
moreover, that the canal from the Jiunma at Kun
giparah to Delhi was the work of Ferose, and is pro-^
bably one of the seven canals mentioned by Ferishta.
I apprehend then that Hissar, or Hissar-Feroozeh,
of the Ayin-Acbaree, is the same with the Fero-
seabad of Ferishta. But possibly Ferose might only

IHtANB NAVIGATION. 2i

embellish and increase the fortifications of Hissar,
and then give his name to it, a practice very com-
mon in Hindoostan, to the utter confusion of historic
records^ and with no less injustice to the original
founders. The town of Sursutti, by the authority
of MS. maps and other circumstances, I place on
the river of that name, between Tannasar and Kythil,
{or KuteiJ,) and Hassi, or Hansi, on the west, or
rather south-west of Kythil. Hissar, or Feroseabad,
will {Tccupy a place still farther to the south-west,
Bad in this position will be about seventy-five cpsses
ftom Delhi, in a west or north*west direction, and
about 100 miles from Setlege or Suttuluz, at the
nearest part of Debalpour, from whence the canal
was said to be drawn. The rivulet of Kerah I can no
more trace than the lidger, but I think it will appear
^ clear to the reader as to myself when the text and
the different positions in the map are considered,
(I suppose him to have now before him the last com-
plete one published of Hindoostan) that these
canals had for their immediate object the junction of
the Sedcge and Jumma rivers, and remotely that of
the Indus and Ganges, although they do not allow
us to comprehend the whole scope of Ferose's plan
of inland navigatioix. By a slight inspection of the
map, it will appear that this project would, if the
ground admitted of its . being successfully put into
execution, be one of the greatest undertakings of
the kind that ever was projected; that of cutring
through the isthmus of Suez only excepted. We
should then have seen two capital rivers, which tra-
verse a large part of the continent of Asia, which
enter the sea 1 500 miles apart, and which stretch
out tlxeir aims, as it were^ to meet each pther, united

C2 INLAND NAtieATIOH.

by art (tanals) so as to form an uninterruptn^d mlanA
navigation from Cabul to Assam. I take it for granted
that this canal was never completed, otherwise we
should have heard more of it, as we have of the
canals before described, leading from the rivir
Jumma. The distance between the navigable parts
of the Jumma and the Setlege is not above 120
miles direct.

" The Ganges and Burrampooter rivers, together
with their numerous branches, mtersect the country
of Bengal (which, independent of Bahar and Orissa,
is larger than Great Britain) in such a variety of
directions, as to form the most complete and easy
inland navigation that can be conceived. So equally
and admirably difHised are those natural canals, that
little is left for art to perform in a country which
approaches so near to a perfect plane, that, after
excepting the lands contiguous to Burdwan and
Birboom, &c. &c. which may be reckoned about
a sixth part of Bengal, we may safely affirm that
every other part of the country has, even in the
dry season, some navigable stream within twenty-
five miles at farthest, and more commonly within
one third of that distance.

" It is supposed that this inland navigation gives
constant employment to 30,000 boatmen, nor will
this excite our surprise when it is known that all the
salt, and a large proportion of the food consumed
by 10,000,000 of people, are conveyed by water
within the kingdom of Bengal and its dependencies.
To these must be added, the transport of the com-
mercial exports and imports, probably to the amount
of 2,000,000 sterling, per annum, the interchange
of manufactures and productions throughout tlic

2NI*AND NAVIGATION* 23

wbde country, the fisheries, and the article c^tra-
relKng. The vessels made use of vary in bulk fronfi
1 80 tons down to the size of a wherry. Those from
thirty to fifty tons are reckoned the most eligible
for transporting nicrchandise.

" The rivers are in a tranquil state from the time
of the change of the monsoon, in October, to the
middle of March, when the north- westeb begin in
the easfern part of Bengal, and these winds ard the
mo5f formicUble enemies that are met with in this
ifl/and navigation ; they are sudden and violent
squalls of wind and rain, and, although of no dura-
tion, are often attended with fatal effects, if not

X, carefully guarded against : whole fleets of trading

^j^ boats have been sunk by them.
I ** During the long interval between the rainy
season and the beginning of the north-westers, the
navigator is secure with respect to weather, and has
only to observe a common degree of attention in
piloting clear of shallows and stumps of trees ; the
rate of motion must principally determine that of
the boat, for the motion acquired by the oars of a
Idrge budgerow* hardly exceeds eight miles a day, at
ordinary times. From the beginning of November
to the latter end of May, the usual rate of going
with the stream is forty miles in twelve hours, and
during the rest of the year from fifty to seventy
^miles in the same time. The country, as I observed

• A budgerow is a traTelling boat, which is used in these in-
land navigations, constraaed nearly like a pleasure barge ; some
of them have cabins founeen feet wide and proportionably long^
and which are £tted up genteelly, according to the company they
carry and price of carriage, Thjcse boats draw from four to fivp
feet water.

INLAND NAVIOATtON,

before, is nearly a plane ; to prove which, a secti(Mi
of the ground, parallel to one of the branches, in
length sixty miles, was taken, and found to have
only nine inches descent in a mile ; but the windings
of the river were so great as to reduce the declivity^,
on which the water ran, to less than four inches per
mile'. The medium rate of the motion of th«
Ganges is less than three miles an hour in dry months.
In the wet season, and during th^ draining the
waters from the inundated lands, the current runs
from five to si^t miles an hour ; but there are in*
stances of its running seven and eight miles an hour/*

IPfLAND NATIGATIOK* tS

SECTION III.

Particular account of the Catials in Russia ; the first
begun ly Colonel Breckelly a German^ who failed in
the attempt y and fled the country in disguise j Capcun
Ferry, an Englishman, was next employed by the
Czar, Peter the Great-^Three different surveys of
Captain Perry^^Great extent of this Navigation^
and amazifjg trade carried on it between Chins and
Russia.

Peter Ac Great, Czar of Muscovy, having
observed, whilst in Holland, that the industrious
inhabitants of that country had, by diligent perse*
yerance^ and principally by means of canals, raised
n small tract of marshy land into a populous and
powerful state ; this great prince, among his other
grand designs, formed the plan of having an inland
navigation for conveying the rich commodities of
Persia to his new city of Petersburgh. They were
first to be transported by the Caspian Sea to Astracan,
and thejRCc through the mouth of the river Wolga,
and by a conjunction of canals into the river Mesta,
and the.lake Novogorod ; and thence into lake Ladoga^
and by the river Neva to Petersburgh, being a course
of 466 miles. He likewise projected a communi-
cation, between the rivers Don and Wolga, which
were to join the river Occa by another canal^
and thus effect a navigation to Moscow by the
fiver Mosca, and afterwards^ by several other canals

26 INX.AND IfATIGATION.

of communication, thfqugh the river Dwina to the
city of Archangel, on the White Sea ; and lastly, the
productions and commodities from Archangel and
the adjacent countries were to be conveyed through
the river Onega into lake Onega, by a canal, and
also through lake Ladoga, which lies at the foot of
the Gulph of Finland, and by the river Neva to
Petersburgh. But the death of this great monarch
prevented the completion of this noble undertaking,
which would have rendered Petersburgh the most
populous city and best place of traffic in the world.
• In the year 1698 this work was begun by a Colonel
Breckell, a German, who was a Colonel in the Czar's
army, and who had the reputation of a good engi-
neer, as to fortifications, but very little understood
the business of making canals. The first sluice that
he made was blown up ; the water taking its coiurse
under the foundation, on the approach of the first
flood, and before it was well completed, at the first
shutting the gates ; in consequence of which Breckell,
when he went to Moscow the following winter, ob-
tained a pass, as for one of bis servants, whom he
pretended he must send for some necessaries for the
work, and with the said pass made his escape out of
the country.

During this first year he h^d 12,000 men under
his command, employed in digging, cutting down
timber, &c. &c. &c. whose time and labour were all
lost ia one night.

This year the Czar of Muscovy was in England,
(oft his tour of Europe) and by the recommendation
of the Marquis of Carmarthen and Mr. Dummcr,
the surveyor of the navy, engaged and employed
Captain John Perry as a person every way qualified

IKLUND NAl'IGATIOW. VJ

to serve his Majesty, as well in his deigns in
estabhshing a fleet, as making his rivers navigable,
where not so by nature, and cutting artificial canab
to join them, to effect an inland navigation through
a great part of the country. Captain Perry was
engaged at a salary of 300l. sterling a year, and
twenty-five roubles* per month subsistence money,
with all mtvelling charges, besides the promise of a
handsome reward at the conclusion of any work.

Captain Perry was immediately sent to Moscow,
with orders that on his arrival there he should be
directly forwarded to the province of Ascracan,
seventy-five miles beyond Moscow, to survey the
work that Colonel Breckell bad begun ; and on his
arrival there he found the work blown up and Breckell
gone, as has been before related.

Upon this work Captain Perry was employed three
summers successively, with orders to have 30,000
men to work ; but he seldom had above half that
number, and the last year not 10,000 men, nor
the necessary materials sufficiently provided ; for
the governor of Astracan, and all the principal boyars
or nobility of that country, obstinately opposed the
undertaking, declaring it to be impossible to be
efFedled by the hands of men. The governor repre-
sented it to be burthensome to the country, from the
great number of men employed in it, and used all his
endeavours to cause it to be abandoned as imprac-
ticable; saying, that God had made the nvers to
go one way, and it was presiunption in man to think
or attempt to turn them another.

The Czar having been defeated by the Swedes
j^t the battle of Narva, in the latter end of the year

f A rooble is 48. Englisb, and sometimes 4b, 6J«

28 INLAND NAVIGATION,

170J, CSaptain Perry received orders to (ittend the
Czar at Moscow, and to let all the work stand still,
leaving one of his assistants there to take care of
what was done, some of the sluices being finished,
and others nearly so, and the canal half dug.

In the year 1 702 Captain Perry was sent to Vero-
Dize, a city situated on a river of the same name,
which falls into the river Don, to fix on a place near
the mouth of that large river, to lay the Czar's navy
upon blocks on dry land, to repair, by damming up the
river, &c. which navy was to act against the Trnks.
And here I will leave Captain Perry till the year
1707 or 17O8, building and repairing ships of war,
(one being of 80 guns,) making a dock yard, sheds
for the ships fo lie dry, warehouses, storehouses,
&c. &c. &c«

The Czar having, at this time, formed the great
design of building a new city at the mouth of the
river Neva, which runs out of lake Ladoga into the
Baltic Sea, Captain Perry was again called from ship
building, and ordered to attempt three several ways
to cut canals from the great river Wolga, and other
rivers, to bring timber, provisions, &c. &c. from the
interior parts of the country to the new city of ^
Petersburgh.

Captain Perry, therefore, departed with assistants,
from the side of lake Ladoga to the river Wolga,
to trace the several rivers as they fall into each other,
to the places where, at the heads or first springs from
whence they take their rise, or where they approach
nearest, and a communication may be the easiest
effected. He accordingly took the descent or dif-
ference of the level of the said several rivers as they
fall down into the Wolga on the one side of the

WLAKD NAVIGAtlOIT. iQ

coontry, and discharge themselves into lake Ladoga
on the other, with such observations as were necessary
to be made, and remrned at the end of the year
1710 to give an account to his Majesty of what he
had done, who was then at his new city of Peters-
burgh, and to lay before him the drafts, levels, rises
and falls, and a report of the .properest place, the
time requisite, and the expences necessary for making
such communications, by the way of the riverKoefsha,
hlce Beila, and the river Shacksna, on the one side
of the country, falling into the Wolga, near the
town of Rebna ; and by the way of the river Whi-
tegor, lake Onega, and the river Swire, falling into
lake Ladoga, on the other side of the country ; where
it was necessary to construct twenty-two locks or
sluices, and to cut an easy canal not above three
English miles in length. A draught of this intended
communication, and an estimate of the time and
expence which would be necessary for its completion,
he presented to the Czar, who received them very
graciously.

The following short abstract of the survey will
probably not be unacceptable to the curious
reader.

The first survey of the country was by the way
of the rivers Sass and Tiffin, to the top of the high
land within the country, whence an arm of the
river Tiffin takes its first rise. He followed the same
the whole way, with abundance of falls, descending
into lake Ladoga, through a distance of 174 Russian
wersts,* winding as the rivers take their course, to
Be a difference of level of 897 English feet, and
from the top' of the said high land, in running on

^ A Riisiut) werst is just three.fourths of an English mile.

30 INLAND NAVIGATION,

tlic Other side of the country, 420 wcrsts down the
rivers Chacodoshca and Molloga ; to the place where
the river Shacksna falls into the Wolga the descent
was found to be 562 feet.

The second route Captain Perry took was by the
way of the river l^niSta, and lake Elmena, and the
river Volkoff, falling into lake Ladoga ; in running a
course of 550 wersts the descent was found to be
568 feet ; and on the other side of the country,
southward, descending by the way of the river
Twerc and Wolga, as far as the mouth of the river
Shacksna, aforesaid, in running 720 wersts, the
descent was Tound to be 233 feet.

The. third route of the said engineer was by the
way of the river Whitigor, lake Onega, and the river
Swire, falling into lake Ladoga ; ^nd in the running
of 278 wersts the descent was found to be but 445
feet frdm the top of the highest land, where the
rivers come nearest for a canal to be cut ; and the
descent down on the other side of the country, in
running 418 wersts, by the way of the rivers Keofsha,
lake Beila, and Shacksna, falling into the Wolga at
the same place, before-mentioned, only. 110 feet.
' This being the lowest or most level part of the
country, attended with the least falls, and requiring
the least number of locks to be made, and the rivers
Swire and Shacksna and a great part of the rivers
Keofsha and Whitigor, being already navigable for
small' veilels, which pass the whole year backwards
and forwards, except only when the rivers are frozen,
Captain Perry, therefore, recommended to the Czar
this last survey, as abundantly preferable for making
the intended communication and canals."^

* See Perxy's State of Russia^

IKLAD^P NAVIGATIOI^. 31

What was left uadooe by Peter the Great has beea
carrying on and cocnpleting with the utmost assiduity
by his successors ; and a communication is now
efiected from the Baltic and the Caspian Sea, by
which a navigation is opened to Persia ; a new com-
munication with the river Wolga is Hkewisc under-
taken, the old one being found so dangerous as ta
be almost aseless.

Several other works of this kind are carrying oa
for the benefit of trade and commerce, by order of
the late Empress, in different parts of those domi-
aions ; and the most experienced and able engineers
have been engaged from every country in Europe^
which will not fail to render Petersburgb, what Peter
the Great intended it should be, the emporium of
the north, if not of Europe*

A short sketch of the works carried on in Russia
for the improvement of inland navigation, since the
death of Peter the Great, some of which, as I be-
fore observed, were begun by him, and perfected by:
his great successors, will shew the attention there
paid to the internal commerce of that vast country ;
and wh^n we consider the great labour, and prodi-
gious sums of money those canals must have cost,
we shall be astonished that they were ever completed,
as Russia has been almost continually engaged in
expensive wars since they were first undertaken.

There is, perhaps, no part of the world where
inland navigation is carried through such an extent
of country as in Russia, it being possible in that
empire to convey goods by water 4472 miles, from
the frontiers of China to Petersburgh, with an in-
terruption of only about sixty miles ; and from the
city of Astracan. on the Caspian Sea, to the same

31 INLANB NAVIGATION.

capital, 1434 miles. A most astonishing tract of
inland navigation, almost equal to one-fourth of the
circumference of the earth.

The communication, by water, between Astracan
and Fetersburgh, or between the Caspian Sea and
the Baltic, is formed by means of the celebrated
canal of Vishnei-Voloshok. This great work, which
was begun and completed by Peter the Great, has
been so much improved, by the late Empress, that
vessels now reach Petersburgh in less than half the
time they formerly did.

By examining the map of Russia, we shall find
the Twertza joins the Wolga at Iver, that the Shlina
forms the lake Mastino, which gives rise to the
Masta, and the latter falls, after a course of 234
miles, into the lake Umcn, which issues the river
Volkof, which runs 130 miles to lake Ladoga, and
supplies the Neva, so that in effect the Shlina, the
Masta, the Volkof, and the Neva may be considered
as the same river flowing into and through different
lakes, changing names at intervals. By uniting, there-
fore, the Shlina, which communicates with the Baltic, .
with the Twertza, which flows into the Wolga^ and by
that river into the Caspian Sea, is formed the junction
of those two seas. This junction is made by the canal
of Vishnei-Voloshok, where the Shlina is united to
the Twertza by the following canals and rivers.

Close to Vishnei-Voloshok the Shlina is formed by
the confluence of two rivers, Shlina and Zna ; near
the latter are the sources of the Twertza. In order
to join, the Twertza with the Zna, the following
works were made by the Czar Peter,

Near the village of Klutsbina a canal was dug to
a small lake of the same name ; a second canal
was dug to the lake Gorodolub, and a third from

IVLkSV NAVIGATION* 33

tlieoce to the Zna. At the same village, just be-
low the first canal, a lock of four gates was con-
structed across the Shiina, in order to stop the
course of that river, and, by means of the afore-
said canals and lakes, to convey water into the
Zna above Visbflci-Voloshok. But to keep always
this supply of water in reserve, and to let as much
into the town as is judged necessary, a great lock of
seven g^tes was constructed across the Zna, below
the fiiird canal. The Zna and the Twertza were
tuiced by a canal, beginning at the source of the
latter ; and at the end of the canal a lock was made.
The natural course of the Zna was shut up by two
locks in the town, one of which may ako serve for
a passage. A canal was also dug from the Zna to
the Shiina, at the end of which is the lock at Zna.
The several canals are supplied with wajter, and the
vessels are navigated from the Twertza into the canal
of Zna, by the following operation of locks.

The locks of Klutshina, and those in the town of

Vishnei-Voloshok, and that of the Zna being shut,

the lock of the Twertza is opened ; the waters of the-

Zna and Shiina are conveyed through the canal of

the Twertza into that river, and the barks and

barges pass into the Zna at Vishnei-Voloshok; when^

a sufficient number has been admitted, the lock of

the Twertza is shut, and the waters being raised to

a certain level, which it takes two or three days to

effect, by means of the lock of seven gates, that of

the Zna is opened, and the vessels are gradually, let

down a small fall, to the number of twenty in an

hour. At night the lock is shut, if on the next day

there is a proper depth, the vessels keep descending

through the lock of the Zna, or, if not, they must

84 INLAKD navigation;

remain for a day or two, till there is water enough
collected. Having, by these means, all passed into
the Shlina, they proceed without interruption through
the Lake Mastino to the beginning of the Maata,
where a lock has been lately constructed, which holds
the waters of this lake in reserve. By this reservoir
the navigation is so greatly facilitated, that the lock
of the Zna being shut, and that of the Twertza
open, the latter river, which formerly was almost
dry for several weeks, is now generally navigable,
even in the midst of summer. Within two or three
days after the passage of the vessels in the spring,
the supply of water, from the melting of the snow,
is so verv considerable that the locks, both of the
Twertza and of the Zna, are open at the same time«

With respect to the navigation of the Masta,
several rivulets falling into it are confined by locks,
which being opened successively, as the vessels arc
passing, fill the river, and render the shallows passable ;
and bdng again closed, hold perpetual reservoirs of
water for the same purpose. This operation is per-
formed five or six times in the summer. By some
other works lately constructed, a considerable addi-
tion of water has been obtained, and it is expected
that the Twertza will become always navigable, and
that the lock of the Masta will only be shut for a
short time.

The boats employed. on this occasion are towed by
ten horses, at the rate of ten or twelve miles a day,
up the Twertza to Vishnei-Voloshok, from which
place they are rowed as far as Novogorod ; each vessel
is provided with ten men, those which are laden with
hemp require twenty men. At Noshino and Bassatino
tbey change pilots, and take in ten additional men to

IKLAND NAVIOATIOK. 85

|»5S Ihe upper and small cataracts. At Apezenskoi-
iladok, which stands at the head of the great cata-
racts, they procure another pilot and two assistants,
iind, on account of the rapidity of the current, in-
crease their compJement to sixty men. The fall of
the river is 122^ yards perpendicular in twenty
miles, being scooped out of solid rock, and the
stream is so violent that the vessels shoot along this
space within an hour; they have been sometimes
dashed against the rocks, or overset by accident ; ia
the year 1778 above thirty vessels were lost at one
time.

From the foot of the great cataracts the pilot of
Vishnei-Voloshok steers the vessel 120 miles further
down several shoals, which, however, have been
considerably reduced and almost levelled. In spring
the vessels are allowed to draw two feet and a half
water, in summer only two feet two inches. In
autumn the navigation from Vishnei-Voloshok to
Petersburg is performed in little more than a month ;
in the summer, three weeks; and in spring, only
a fortnight. In the year 1777> 3485 vessels passed
through this canal ; this alone shews the amazing
internal trade of Russia^ and this from one quarter
of the country only. The vessels being steered
down the Masta^ across Lake II men to Novogorod,
descend the river Volkof ; and the Ladoga canal,
which does not enter into Lake Ladoga, but passes
up to near the mouth of the river Volkof, and winds
its course, on the borders of Lake Ladoga, into the
river Neva, which it enters near the village of
Scblusselburg and proceeds to Petersburg.

This canal was begun in 1718, by Peter the
Great, and was finished during the reign of the

D 2

36 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Empress Anne. It was carried at. first only as far as
the village of Kabona to a rivulet of the same name
which falls into the lake to the east of Schlusselburg,
but now reaches, without interruption, from the
Volkof to the Neva. Its length is sixty-seven miles
and a half, and its breadth seventy feet ; its mean
depth of water, in summer, is seven feet, and in ,
spring ten feet ; it is supplied by the Volkof and
eight other rivulets, the latter being received into
reservoirs, and are admitted into the canal by flood-
gates, and the superfluous water is discharged through
an equal number of openings on the opposite side.
Tht vessels enter through the locks and sluices of
the river Volkof, and go out through those of
Schlusselburg. In 1778 no less than 4927 vessels
passed through the canal of Lake Ladoga, an in«
' crease of inland commerce of almost one-fourth in
one year, by means of canal navigation*

A scheme has been projected to form a canal and
deepen rivers to make a navigation from Archangel
to Petersburg ; it goes on very slowly, only about
seven miles are finished.

The grand project of uniting the Caspian Sea to
the Balric, and also to the Bkck Sea, by a junction
of the river Don with the Wolga, was planned by
Peter the Great. ; These two rivers approach each
other to within forty miles distance in the province
*of ^Astracan, and the two rivulets Ilofla and Cama-
shinkska, the former of which falls into the Don,
and the latter into the Wolga, are separated by an
interval of land of only five miles ; could these two
rivulets be made navigable, and imited by a canal^
the Black Sea would be joined to the Caspian Sea
and the Baltic. With this view Peter sent Captain

INLAND NAVIGATION. Sj

Perry, as before observed, to the spot ; the canal was
begun under his inspection, and a cut was actually
made of a mile and half in length ; but the scheme
was then dropped for reasons before mentioned.
It has been revived, however, by the late Em-
press; and professor Lovitz was intrusted with the
execution of it ; and having traced out the ground
as before, /lad begun the work, when, in 1774, he
was wantonly murdered by the impostor Fugatschef.
Lovitz found the plan of Captain Perry to be right ;
but that the greatest difficulty would be in deepening
the beds of the two rivulets and procuring a supply of
water sufficient to make them navigable.* As the
Wolga and the Don are but forty miles distant, and
land carriage in this country very cheap and easy,
and as so many obstacles, by the stupid natives,
are thrown in the way, I much question whether
the canal will ever be finished.

I hope not to be deemed prolix if I here add a
short account of the frontier places of commerce
between the Russians and Chinese, the commodities
in which they traffic, and the route of the Russian
inland navigation. ^^

At a great distance up the river ^enisoy, which
empties itself into the Frozen ocean, or sea of Kara,
beyond Nova Zembla, near ^ town called Yeniscik^
a large branch takes an immense sweep to the north-
cast. This branch is called the Zunguska river, and

• The author of this history was sent, in 1783, to push on this
work, and had 7 00 men ordered to dig, and cut down timber. Sec.
but after being there nineteen months with often not 100 men, and as
no carpenters were sent him, nor were other artificers tc be had, while
every possible obstacle was made by the Boyars to hinder the work ;
he returned to Petersburg, without doing any thing but cutting
down a few thousand timber trees,

38 INLAND NAVIGATION.

after running full ten degrees in that direction, turn?
nearly due south. Out of it fork several rivers,
called the Ilim, Irja, Oka, and Angara, which last
is the principal, and forms a very large body of
water, not less than eight degrees in length and two
in breadth, called the lake of Braikel, in which arc
a great number of islands, some of them very large.
Frptn nearly the middle of the lake lengthwise,
another large river goes off still farther south ; on
the first branch of which stands the town of Udinsk;
and on the second branch, the town Selinginsk,
which is the chief town of the frontier government
of Russia. The next branch is called the Kiatker,
and on the fork of this river is the Russian town
Kiatka ; and on the opposite side of the river the
Chinese frontier town Maitmatschin, which is their
commercial town at the extremity of the Chinese
frontiers next to Russia. At this place the rivers
Tchikoi, Bura, Tola, Orchon, and Selenga go off,
and some of them branch again and end in lakes.
The Russian town Kiatka lies (according to Pallas's
Travels through Siberia to China) in Ion. 124° J8'E.
from Fcrro, and lat. 51° N. and is distant 8676 miles
from Moscow, and 3025 from Pekin. The frontier
Chinese town, Maitmatschin, is on the opposite side
of the river, which is only 140 yards wide, and lieg
to the south of Kiatka.

The principal commodities which Russia exports
to China, are furs and peltry ; the most valuable
are the skins of se5^ otters, heavers, fpxes, bear^
bucharian lambs, Astracan sheep, martens, sables,
ermins, grey squirrels, &c. cloths, English, Prussian,
%nd French camblcts ; calimancoes, druggets^ whit?
fl^iipels, fich . stviffSjp velyets, coafse linen, Rv^ssi§

INLAND NAVIGATlOlir. S§

leather, glass ware, looking-glasses, hardware, as
knives, scissars, locks, &c. tin, Russia talc, camels,
horses, and horned cattle. The Chinese also pur-
chase, at a great price, greyhounds, hounds, barbets^
and dogs for hunting wild boars.

At Kiatka the finest Hudson's Bay beavers have
been sold at 20 roubles a skin, or about five pounds
English money, and otter skins at 35 roubles, or
eight pounds twelve shillings, and the best Canada
blaci fox skins have been sold for 100 roubles, or
tfventy pounds English money each.

The commodities imported from China by Russia
are, raw and manufactured silk, (the raw is prohibited
in China under pain of death, but it is smuggled
to Kiatka,) raw and manufactured cotton ; teas of
the best sorts ; porcelain, japan cabinets and cases ;
lacquered and varnished tables and chairs ; boxes in-
laid with mother of pearl, &c. fans, toys, and
small wares; artificial flowers, tiger and panther
skins ; white lead, vermilion, and other colours ;
canes, tobacco, rice, sugar-candy, preserved ginger,
and other sweetmeats ; rhubarb, musk, &c. &c.

The Chinese transport their goods to Kiatka
chiefly on camels ; it is five days journey from Pekin
to the Chinese wall, and forty-six more to cross the
Mongol desert ro Kiatka.

In going to Kiatka they make the greatest part of
their journey by land, for two reasons ; one is, that
in most of the rivers the streams are rapidj and run
the contrary way, which they take the advantage of
in returning; and the other, that in the journey by
land, they collect in their route skins and furs, and
various small articles for private trade.

The Russian commodities are transported by land

40 , INLAND NAVIGATION**

from Petersburg and Moscow to Tobolsk from
thence the merchants sometimes embark upon the
river Irtish, and go down tp its junction with the
Oby ; then they tow their boats up the Oby as far
as Narym, where they enter the river Ket, which
they ascend to MakofFskoi-Ostiog> at which place
the merchandise is conveyed about sixty miles by
land to Yenirei ; they then ascend that river, and
the Tunguska and Angara to Irtkutsk, cross the lake
Baikal, and up the river Selenga to Kiatka. It is
a voyage of such difficulty against the streams east^
ward, that it is hardly finished in a summer; for
which reasons the merchants often prefer the way by
land, and rendezvous at the fair of Irbit, near
Tobolsk, from whence they go in sledges, during
the winter, to Kiatka, where they arrive about
February, the season in which the chief commerce
is carried on with the Chinese. But on their return
they descend by the rivers Selenga, Angara, Tun-
guska, Ket, and Oby to the junction of the latter,
to the Irtish ; they then ascend that river to Tobolsk,
and go up the Tobolsk river into the river Iset, at
the head of which is a small lake, whence a canal is
cut into the river Tchusovia, which falls into the
Kama, which latter river falls into the Wolga, near
Kasan. The navigation of the Wolga by Tzwer
and Vishnei-Voloshok to lake Ladoga and Peters-
burg I have before mentioned.

In order to give the reader some idea of that vast
country over which merchandise is frequently trans-
ported by land carriage, in the journey from Peters-
burg to Kiatka^ I shall add the following list pf
distances.

IKLAND KAVIGATIOK. 41

From Petersburg to Moscow 734 wersts ; from
Moscow to Tobolsk 2385 ; from Tobolsk to Irkutsk
29 18.; and from Irkutsk to Kiatka 471 j in all 6508
wersts, or 4338 English miles and two-thirds of a
mile: but the distances by the rivers are much
greater, as has been already observe^*

4Ct INtAKB irATIGATIOir,

SECTION IV.

A full Account of the Canals of Sweden and Denmark,
together with a Description of the Canal of Kiel in
the Dutchy of Holstein ; its Utility^ by effecting a
Junction between the Baltic and the German Ocean.

oWEDEN has long been sensible of the utility of
inland navigation ; the following account is chiefly
extracted fronni the Travels of Mr. Coxe, of the most
remarkable works of this kind that have been con-
structed or projected in that country.

At the village of Trolhaetta'in the province of
Gothland, and on the river Gotha, close to the
cataracts of that river, and near the entrance inta
the great lake Wenner, begins a stupendous work,
intended to open a passage for vessels by means of a
navigable canal, called from this place the canal of
Trolhaetta.

This canal forms part of a plan long projected by
the Swedes to unite the Baltic and the German Ocean
by an inland navigation, as well for the purpose of
improving the interior trade of the provinces, as of
preventing the interruption of their foreign com-
merce, which is the inevitable consequence of a war
with Denmark ; for as all vessels sailing out of the
Baltic must pass through the Sound, they arc exposed
to the Danish ships of war and privateers, which shel-
ter themselves under the batteries of Elsineur, which

INLAND NAVIGATIOir. 43

commands the passage of the Strata unless a Swedish
fleet should command the channel.

Gustavus Vasa was the first sovereign who per-
ceived the utility of such an inland navigation, when
he made Lodese, now Gotheborg, a staple town of
trade, that the merchant ships coming to Sweden
might not be obliged to sail through the Sound, and
he conceived hopes that, at some future period, mer-»
chandise might be transported from thence to Stock-*
holm by means of the lakes Wenner, Hielmar, and
Maeler, when the rivers and lakes which join them
should be made navigable, Eric XIV. desirous of
carrying his father's designs into execution, gave orders
for surveying the waters communicating with these
lakes, and directed plans to be formed for joining
them by artificial canals ; but the execution of this
great scheme was frustrated by the turbulence and
misfortunes of his reign.

Several succeeding sovereigns had this great object
in view. Charles IX. promoted it by the Carlsgraf
Canal, and Charles XI. by that of Arboga. The
undertaking, however, of forming a communication
by water through the whole country, was alwayi
considered as a work of extreme difficulty. Motraye
says, that Gustavus Adolphus was inclined to en-
courage the design, but as no person could be found
in Sweden bold enough to engage in the enterprise,
he adds, that Charles XI. seqt for some Dutch engi-
neers, who, after they had measured the falls of the
waters between the Jakes Wenner and Hielmar, de-
clared it to be impracticable. Difiiculties, however
insurmountable they might appear to persons of more
sober understanding, were no obstacle to the genius
fif Charles Xlf. fhe sanie autjior iriforms us th^t th?

44 INLAND NAVIGATION.

celebrated engineer Polhem laid before the king a pro- '
posal for rendering the cataracts of Trolhaetta navi-
gable ; and for opening a communication not only
between Gotheborg and Stockholm, but also with
the lake Wenner, the Vetter, and Nordkioping,
sufficient for the passage of very large vessels.—
Polhem*s plans were directly approved, and begun
by Charles, ever fond of extraordinary projects ; and
although it was interrupted for some time by the
king's death, it was again revived, with fresh vigour,
under the late sovereign Adolphus Frederic.

This plan may be divided into three principal parts.
1st. The junction of the Hielmar with the Maelen
2d. That of the Hielmar with the Wenner, and
3rd. that of the Wenner with the German Ocean.

First, the junction of the Hielmar with the Maelen
These two lakes are united by the small river Ulvison
and the canal of Arboga; the former rises to the
west of Arboga, flows through the town, and falls
into the Maeler at Kungfaer. The canal of Arboga
is cut from the Hielmar, and continued to Ulvison,
about half a mile to the east of the town. It was .
begun in the reign of Christina, but being only cal-
culated for small vessels, was widened and deepened
by order of Charles XI. and completed under his
successor Charles XII. It belonged to the crown,
until I76p, at which period it had been so much
neglected as scarcely to be of any use. But a com-
pany of seven merchants of Orebro undertook to
cleanse and repair it at their own expense, upon con-
dition of receiving all tolls of vessels that shall pass
through it. The canal is, excepting a few parts,
broad enough to receive two. vessels a-breast; its
depth is eight feet. It is chiefly supplied with water

IKLAND NAVIGATION* 45

from lake Hielmar, the surface of which is eighty
feet perpendicular higher than its level ; it consists
of eight sluices or locks. The vessels it admits are
the same which navigate the lakes ; they are decked,
and with one. mast ; are seventy-six feet long, and
forty-three tons burthen, and draw between six and
seven feet water when laden.

ad. In order to join the Hielmar and Wenncr,
it was proposed to open the navigation of the Swartan,
which falls into the western extremity of the Hielmar,
at Orebro ; and to make a canal from that river to
lake Morken, from thence, by the Leton, to the
Skager, and from the Skager, by the GuUspang, to
the Wenner. There is reason to conclude, from
accounts of persons who have been on the spot and
inspected the above mentioned rivers, that they are
so shallow and stony that it would be very difficult
and expensive to render them navigable ; and as the
£unt attempts hitherto made upon the Gullspang
have all failed of success, it has been proposed to
cut a canal directly from lake Morken to Christine*
hamn, which is situated on the eastern shore of lake
Wenner ; but as no part of this project has been yet
begun, and the whole would be attended with great
difficulties, there is little prospect that this branch of
die great undertaking will ever be completed. On
account of the great difficulties attending this junc-
tion, a plan was projected to form an inland naviga-
tion from the eastern coast of Sweden, sduth of
Maeler, by means of the Wetter to the Wenner, and
in 1774 a map was published to shew the scheme
was practicable.

3rd. The junction of the Wenner with the Ger-
man Ocean is next to be considered ; and this may

40 l^LX^li NAVIGATICW.

be accomplished by the river Gotha^ which issnti
from the southern extremity of the lake Wenncs-
borg, which, after a course of seventy miles, falls
into the sea, near Gotheborg, provided that river
could be made navigable its whole course ; but as,
on account of shoals and cataracts, its stream is
' greatly impeded^ the communication has been at^
tempted by the Caflsgfaf canal, the canal of Trol-
haetta and the sluices of Akerstroem and Edet/
which, therefore, it is proper separately to describe.
The channel of the river Gotha not being open
and free from its first issuing from the Wenner, a
cut from a bay of that lake was begun by Charles IX.
but was not entirely completed before the reign of
Charles XII. Polhcm, whom I have mentioned
before, erected by order of that monarch a sluice,
which noit being constructed on a firm foundation,
was scarcely finished before it was izndermined and.
carried away by the water. From that time the
Carlsgraf canal remained without a sluice, and conse-
quently without a vessel passing it, until the reign of
Adolpbus Frederic. In 1754 a new sluice, was finished,
which was called the sluice of Jessin, in honour of
the prime minister of that name. It was formed by
a subterraneous channel forty feet long, eighteen
broad, and twelve high ; but these dimensions were
too small for the admission of vessels of more than
forty tons burthen, and it frequently happened that
even those could not pass whenever there was either
too much or too little water. To remove these dif-
ficulties, another sluice was completed in J76s, called
in honour of the King, Gustavus. This superb work
is a channel 400 feet in length, the half of it is cut
out of solid rock, and consists of two locks, e^ch

IVLANB KAVIGAXrOir. A1

ftOO feet long and 36 brt)«l ; the sides arc strongly
faced with brick and stone. The greatest depth of
water is thirteen feet, the lowest six feet. The usual
vessels that navigate this canal are of eighty tons
burthen, but when the water is high, larger may pass;
in 1777 one vessel of 130 tons worked its way
through.

From the end of this canal to Trolhaetta, which is
five miles, the navigation of the river is uninterrupted^
and ilows in a gentle current ; it varies in its breadth
jium 3O0 yards to a mile. Near Trolhaetta two
ridges of mountains, which on each side run at a
small distance from the river, approach its banks^
and confine its stream within a narrow channel ; in
this place it is about 400 feet broad, as smooth as
a lake, and without any visible stream, exhibiting
a striking contrast to the roaring of the torrent bielow.
This smoothness of the water continues till it bursts
at once into the cataracts of Trolhaetta, called the
gulfs of h^U, which render all further navigation
impossible. The bed of the river is solid rock, the
banks are perpendicular, and at the beginning of tho
fall several granite islands, thinly covered with under*
wood, junipers, and stubbed pines, rise in the midst
of the stream, down which the water dashes with
increasing impetuosity.

Prom the opening of the fall to the part where
the river again becomes navigable is about two miles;
but it does not roll through the whole of this space
in one unifora?i sheet of water, or with equal violence.
It is divided into four principal cataracts, separated
by whirlpools and eddies, and forming, during the
whole way, the most awfiil scenes, ever varying and
lob sublime to be accurately described. The per-

48 INLAND NAVIGATION.

pendicular height of all the falls considered as one is
about 100 feet. From this description the reader
will readily perceive the extreme difficulty of ren-
dering the cataracts navigable, yet it was through
the midst of them that the daring projector attempted
to form a canal by the works I shall now proceed to
describe.

Just above the first cataract, called Prastenkesdet
fall, several dams were constructed to turn the stream,
and left the main bed of the river quite dry. In
this part some rocks were cut through, and others
blown up, the bed was rendered level, and the
cataract nearly turned into still water. To continue
the navigation, an island of red granite, which
rises in the midst of the great cataract, was divided,
and a canal formed through it of 340 feet in lengthy
including a sluice of 30 feet. The depth of the
&11, and of course the perforated rock, is 23 feet
'4 inches, the breadth 1 8 feet. This is called £ker-^
brad sluice, and was designed to consist of two
locks* At a small distance another canal was formed
on the side of the se.cond great cataract, through a
kind of promontory which projects into the stream.
The solid rock of granite was hollowed 86o feet in
length, 56 feet 6 inches in depth, and 18 feet broad.
This sluice was called Polhem's sluice, and was to
consist of three locks, by which vessels were to be
let doWn a fall of 56 feet 6 inches. At the distance
of iQQX) feet, a third cut was made to the Flates-
berg fall, temndnating in the sluice of Elvius, the last
of this projected plan. The length of the cut is
28 feet, the breadth 18 feet, and the fall 34 feet
S inches. In order to form some idea in what manner
the navigation was to be continued from the sluice

of Polhem to that of Elvius, it will be necessary to
describe the intervening space.

A little belo\Y the sluice of Polhem, the river
dashes through a narrow passage called Stampstroem;
from thence it gradually widens into a kind of bay,
named Hoyon's Warp; it is again cramped into a
narrow channel, by the nearer approach of rocks on
each side, and forms a cataract called Helveft's Fall,
at the extremity of which it expands itself into a
small bason called Ali-Halla, and then again preci-
pirafes itself at the Flatesberg Fall, from whence it
becomes navigable. Instead of continuing any works
through the cataracts^ or by the side of the river, the
Gommunicarion between the sluices of Polhem and
Elvius was attempted in the following manner. A
dyke of stone was constructed across the river just
below the Flatesberg Fall and the sluice of Elvius,
and forming a level with the bottom of Polhem.
This chimerical project, which seems rather too
ridiculous to be seriously entertained, Was, however,
attempted. The king himself visited the work, and
all Sweden was in eager expectation that the favou-
rite project of the nation would at length be com-
pleted. The dyke was built, and the river had risen
twelve feet of the thirty-four^ when< in an instanty
the weight of water above burst the barrier, too
feeble to restrain it^ and instantaneously swept awajT
the labours, and also the expense of several years.
The immensity of the expense will be best con-
ceived by considering that all the cuts were made
through solid rocks of granite. Large subsidies
had been annually raised for the prosecution of the
work, and the national bank had readily advanced
great loans, the ?um total of which has never yet

60 INLAND NAVIGATION.

been divulged. The failure of the project, after
such immense labour and enormous expense, occa-
sioned great discontents among the people, many
of whom, to this day, believe, though there seems
no grounds for it, that the projectors were bribed by
the Danes, and proceeded upon a plan which they
knew would not succeed. * But thus much is evident,
that throughout the whole undertaking, the works,
stupendous in themselves, were conducted without
proper care and attention* ; for after all, the cuts,
which had been excavated with such difficulty, being
only eighteen feet broad, would have been too narrow
to have admitted vessels of such size and burthen
as usually navigate Lake Wenner. In a word, several
ill-judged measures have been taken ; otherwise,
although there were many natural obstacles to sur-
mount in this enterprise, yet greater obstructions
have been surniounted. But Polhem was not sl
Brindley.*

In consequence of this failure, all the works and
sluices hitherto raised were neglected, as totally use-
less, and a new plan for a canal at Trolhaetta has
been projected ; according to which, instead of being
carried, as before, along the channel of the river, it
is to be cut through the solid rock that forms its

* The author of this history on his return from Russia, in 1785,
landed at Stockholm, and came through Sweden, and passed this
stupendous work in his way to Helsinger to go over to Elsineux
into Denmark. He was in company with a gentleman who be-
longed to (he Swedish court, who asked a variety of questions, if
he thought it really were practicable ? he replied, he thought it was,
but with a vast expense and trouble ; and also said, if it were in
England, where such wonderful advantages would accrue,- engineers
would be found to complete it ; and that Vishnei-Voloshok, in
Russia, was nearly as expensive and troublesome.

IJ^LANb KAVIGATION. ^ 51

banks. The plan of this last project is thus described :
the length is to he 4700 feet, and 36 feet broad, and
the depth in some parts 50 feet ; it is to consist of
nine sluices ; and, when we reflect that the whole of
this cut must be hollowed through the bed of red
granite, it is evident that it will be attended with
many, if not more diflSculties than were experienced
in the fomier attempt. It must by no means be
condemned as impracticable. The canal of the
Duke of Bridgewater; that of Languedoc, and
ifte road through the mountain Gemmi, in Switzer-
land, prove that scarcely any thing is impossible to
human industry.

The chief quesdon in this respect seems to be,
whether the enormous expense attending the execu-
tion of the work will be compensated by the advan-
tages resulting from, its completion ? And here, if
we only take in the .navigation from the Wenner to
Gotheborg, we may venture to decide in the nega-
tive. But if we presume that, at any future period,
a communication will be formed from the Gulf of
Bothnia to the Wenner, the accomplishment of this
canal could not be obtained at too dear a rate to
icmove or pass the cataracts of Trolhaetta.

His late Majesty of Sweden, soon after his acces-
aion, visited those works at Trolhaetta, and wisely
ordered them to be suspended for the present, but
that the sluices of Aker and Gustavus should be
finished without delay. Meanwhile, in order tp
facilitate the transport of merchandise from the dis*
tricts bordering on the Wenner to Gotheborg, a
wooden road has been constructed on the side of the
river, from the beginning to the end of the cataracts.
It is supported by very large posts over the rocks,

£ 2

52 iKLAND Navigation.

which, from their irregularity and roughness, would
have been almost impassable for horses.

About a mile below the cataracts, the course of
the river Gotha is again interrupted by a fall, called
Akerstroem. Here a canal has been made through
a rock which projected into the river ; the length of
it is 182 feet, the sluice included ; the depth 26 feet,
and breadth 36 feet; this cut was begun in 1774,
and expected to be opened in 1781.

From Akerstrcem the river is clear to Gotheborg,
excepting at Edet, where its passage is stopped by
a bed of rocks rising in the midst of the stream.
On one side of these rocks another cut has been
made 6oo feet in length, 20 in depth, and 1 8 broad.
This work is ilL executed, and in bad order. A
petition has been presented to the king that it might
be repaired, and improved to the same breadth as
Aker sluice, and there was no doubt but that it
would be done.

The iron and other merchandise is now conveyed
over the lake Wennersborg, and thence through
the Carlsgraf canal, and down the river Gotha to
Trolhaetta. Upon coming to the cataracts, the goods
are unloaded, and carried along the wooden road
about two miles to the end of the falls. There they are
again embarked, and passing through the Akerstroem
and Edet sluices (supposing they are now completed)
arrive, without further impediment, at Gotheborg.
In return, salt, spices, corn, tea, and other commo-
dities of interior consumption are sent up by the
same channel into the provinces about the lake
Wenner.

Thus, for more than a century, the schemes and
efforts of all the engineers employed in Sweden, both

INLAND NAVIGATION. 53

natives and foreigners (except English engineers) to
construct works of the greatest importance to the
country, failed of success. In England, if I may be
permitted the* observation, (as I told the Swedes),
were the same advantages to be expected from sur-
mounting equal difficulties, I have not a doubt but
engineers would be found to accomplish such an
undertakiiig, and private individuals to undertake
and coiuplete it, without any assistance from govern-
mcDt It would be honourable to our country, and
doubtless would prove advantageous to the individual,
should any one of its well-informed engineers go over
and inspect it ; as there can be but little apprehen-
sion, should the report of his opinion encourage the
idea, that this desirable work might yet be brought
to perfection, but the Swedes would use every exer-
tion for its accomplishment.

DENMARK.

Before I particularly describe the canal of Kiel, it
may not be improper to givre a short account of that
capital of Hplstein, it being a part of his Danish
Majesty's dominions, to form an idea of the useful-
ness of that great undertaking.

- Kiel possesses a university for the German subjects
of Denmark, which was founded in l650, by
Christian Albert, Duke of Holstein Gottorp, and
has lately been considerably enlarged by his present
Majesty. It contains twenty- four professors, and
about 3(X) students. The city stands on a small
peninsula in a bay of the Baltic, and has a very
commodious harbour for ships of the largest size. It
is one of the most commercial places of Holstein ;
and its trade will be greatly augmented when the

54 INLAND NAVIGATION*

inland navigation across the peninsula shall be com-
pleted.

The inland navigation for the junction of the
two seas, is to be formed through tlie duchy of
Holstein, by the canal of Kiel and the river Eyder,
which runs by Rcndsburg, and falls into the German
ocean at Tonningen.

This canal begins about three miles north of Kiel,
at the mouth of the rivulet Lewen-sawe, which here-
tofore separated Holstein from Sleswick, and will
form a new boundary between those two duchies.
The distance from the beginning to the last sluice at
Kendsburg is twenty-seven English miles; but, as the
river Eyder is navigable about six miles and three
quarters above Rendsburg, and only requires to be
deepened in some places, ):he cut which is necessary
for its completion, between the two seas, will be only
twenty miles and a half.

The canal was begun in 1777, and in April 1779
it had been cut about six miles, as far* as Sucdbrf ;
and it was computed that the whole would be com-
pleted in J 784. The work was performed by con-
tract; 1024 cubic feet* of earth were to be taken
out for eight shillings, and the whole expense to
amount to about 200,000 pounds.
' Between the Flemhuder and the river Lavens is
the highest point, on each side of which the waters
take different courses to the Baltic and German
ocean ; in this part the ground must be ppened to
the depth of fifty feet. The perpendicular fall to-
wards the Baltic is twenty-five feet six inches ; and
that towards the German ocein twenty- three feet ;
^nd the vessels will be raised up or let dowii by means

f The foot used in Denmark is to the English foot as 21 to 22.

INLAND NAVIGATION, 55

of jthe six following sluices : Holtenau, Knorp, Suc-
dorf, Shinkel, Niederholten, and Rendsburg. The
breadth of the canal is J 00 feet at top, and 54 at
bottom; the sluices are 27 feet broad, and 100
feet long, and the least depth of water is ■ ten feet.
The canal will be furnished with water as far Stein-
warp from the Eyder, and the lakes Flemhudcr and
Wester, and from thence to Rendsburg by the lake
Wetter, from which flows a rivulet that joins the
Eydcr. Common merchant vessels of about 120
fans burthen will be able to navigate this canal.

The utility of this important undertaking will be
evident from a iiiere inspection of the map of Den-
mark. It may be observed that even the smallest
vessels trading from any part of the Danish domi-
nions, on the Baltic, to the Northern seas, must make
a circuit round the extremity of Jutland, and are
liable to be detained by adverse winds. This navi-
gation is so tedious, that goods shipped at Copen-
hagen for Hamburg are not unsually sent by sea
only to Lubec, and from thence, by land, to Ham-
burg. But the completion of this canal will enable
vessels not exceeding 120 tons, or not drawing above
ten feet water, to pass immediately from the Baltic
into the German ocean, and proceed without unload-
ing to Hamburg, or sail to Holland, England, or
other parts, which, in time of war, receive supplies
from Denmark,

SECTION V.

ji short Description of the Canals of Holland and
Flanders^ and the extensive Trade carried on by
them.

JL HE industrious Hollanders, from mere necessity
^nd hatred of their oppressors, the Spaniards, have,
with the greatest labour, jzut such a multitude of
canals in every part of the low, narrow, swampy,
boggy provinces they inhabit, which can scarcely,
vvith propriety, be called land, that for commerce,
fiches, and population, they may now vie with any
other country on the face of the earth in proportion
to its size, even China not excepted.

One third, at least, of this country has been gained
from the sea, by the means of vast dykes and mounds,
some of which arc twenty-one yards in thickness,
^nd which must continually be Jcept in repair, with
prodigiou? labour and wonderful expense, to prevent
^he whole country from being inundated.

The seven United Provinces^ commonly called
Holland, are intersected with innumerable canals,
which it is not my intention to describe circumstan-
tially, since that would t)e to give a geographical
purvey and history of the country. They m.y be
compared in npmber and size to pur public road^
and highways ; and as the latter, with us, are conti-
nually full of coaches, chaises waggons, carts, and
horsemen going from and to the different cities, towns.

IHLAND NAVIGATION. 5?

und villages, so, on the former, the Hollanders in
their boats and pleasure barges, their trekschuyts and
vessels of burthen, are continually journeying and
conveying commodities for consumption or export-
ation from the interior part of the country to the
great cities and rivers. An inhabitant of Rotterdam
may, by means of these canals, breakfast at Delft or
the Hague, dine at Leydeo, and sup at Amsterdam,
or return home again before night. By them also a
mosf prodigious inland trade is carried on between
Holland and every part of France, Flanders, and
Germany. When the canals are frozen over they
travel on them with skaits, and perform long jour-
neys in a very short time, while heavy burdens are
conveyed in carts and sledges, which are then as
much used on the canals as in our streets.

The yearly profits produced by these canals are
almost beyond belief; but it is certain, and has been
proved, that they amount to more than 250,000
pounds for about forty miles of inland navigation,
which is 625 pounds per mile, the square surface of
which miles does not exceed two acres of ground ;
a profit so amazing that it is no wonder other nations
should iniitate what has been found so advantageous.

The canals of Flanders, Ostend, Ghent, Antwerp,
Brussels, &c. cannot, at present, claim much praise.
This country has had its day of commerce when
Europe was in its infancy of improvement ; but yet
possesses great we,alth, and is extremely populous ;
it yet carries on considerable manufactures, although
it is no longer the great mart for cornmerce that it
was 2 or 300 years ago. Its fortified towns, popu-
lation, and canals suffipiently prove what it has here-
tofore been ; and it were to be wished that its inha-

58 INLAND NAVIGATION,

bitants, who have made a bold attempt to obtain
liberty, were less under the influence of bigotry and
superstition, for that alone prevented success.

The cities of Flanders are no longer in the flou-
rishing state in which they were some centuries past.
The canals, which were then numerous, kept in good
order, and filled with vessels loaded with merchan-
dise from every part of the then known world, are
now entirely neglected and out of repair. Holland
on one side, and France on the other, have not only
encroached on their territories, but destroyed their
trade. The city of Amsterdam rose to opulence oq
their decline.

So eariy as the twelfth century the spacious forests
of Flanders were cut down, and the soil was laid
open to the rays of the sun. Large canals were cut
for inland navigation, which, while they drained
the land, opened a communication for the inland
commerce of the country. The river Scheldt was
compelled to yield up fruitful fields which had long
been overflowed, and was restrained within its
channel by two prodigious dykes.

A spacious canal, a work of the sixteenth century,
extends from Brussels (one of the residences of thQ

DukesofBrabant and Burgundy) to the Scheldt, which,
although not open to vessels of these provinces where
it enters the sea, yet opens a communication with
Holland, and by the canals of Flanders, with the
ocean. By this canal the city still carries on some
trade or trafiic, and we find at a distance from the
ocean, and where there is no navigable river, a port
filled with vessels of every kind adapted to all the
purposes of trade and pleasure.

INLAND KAVIGATIOir« SQ

On tlie northcrp banks of the Scheldt, in the
county of Wass, below Ghent, the Prince of Parma,
during the memorable siege of Aptwerp, cut a canal
which still remains.

The Flemish cities, situated in fertile plains, by
the sides of rivers and navigable canals, virere advan*
tageously placed for maintaining those multitudes of
inhabitants which they formerly contained, and the
advancement of that comnjerce for which they were
so disf/flguished. The free fairs, the origin of which
is rery ancient, and of which, though they are now
of less utility, the remains are still to be found here,
are supposed to have been 6rst established in this
country.

The canals of Holland are generally sixty feet
wide and six deep, and are kept cleansed ; the mud,
as manure, is very profitable-; the canals are gene-
rally levels, of course locks are not wanted. From
Rotterdam to Delft, the Hague, and Leyden, the
canal is quite level, but is sometimes affected by
strong winds. For the most part the canals are ele-
vated above the fields or the country, to enable them
to carry oflT the water, which in winter inundates the
land. To drain the water from Delftland, a province
not more than sixty miles long, they employ 200
wind-mills in spring time to raise it into the canals.
All the canals of Holland are bordered with dams, or
banks of immense thickness, and on these depends
the security of the country from inundation ; of
course it is of great moment to keep them in the
best repair ; to effect which there is established a kind
of militia, and in every village is a magazine of pro-
per stores and men, whose business it is to convey
Stones and rubbish in c^rts to any damaged place.

60 INLAND NAVIGATION.

When a certain bell rings, or the waters are at a
fixed height, every man repairs to his post. To
every house or family there is assigned a certain part
of the bank, in which they are to assist in the
repairs. When a breach is apprehended they cover
the banks all over with cloth and stones.

INLAND NAVIGATIOXa 61

SECTION Vh

Abbreviated Account of the Canals of France and
Spain, witi a particular Description of the Canal
of Languedoc*

-rj?x4NCE furnishes us with numerous instances; d£
industry and ingenuity, exerted in the construction
of canals for inland navigation.

The first that history gives an account of in this
country was that projected by Lucius Verus, who
commanded the Roman army in Gaul, under the
Emperor Nero, to join the Moselle and Rhine.

The canal of Briare, called also the canal of Bur*
gundy, was begun under Henry IV. and finished in
the reign of Louis XIII. • It forms a communication
between the Loire and the Seine, and consequently
to Paris ; it begins from the Loire at the town of
Briare, passing to Montargis, where it takes the
name of the canal of Montargis ; just above which
town it joins the canal of Orleans, and then proceeds
on in one canal to Chau, Landau, Nemours, and
Moret, and falls into the Seine near Pontainbleau ;
it is of the greatest utility to all this part of France,
and even to Burgundy. This canal has forty-two
locks and sluices, and by it Paris is supplied with
corn, flour, and provisions, as well as the other pro-
ductions of several provinces^ such as Provence oils,
dried fruits, hard-ws^re, muscadel wines, paper, and
other merchandise ; and in return the cloths, stuffs.

62 tNLANl> ltfAVIGATld».

camblets, &C. of Abbeville, Amiens, Rheims, Sedafli
and Lisle are also «ent by this communication to the
southern parts of France.

The canal of Orleans, which joins the above ^
canal at Montargis, was begun in 1675, to effect |l
a communication between the Seine and the *:
Loire^ near to the city of Orleans. It is much
shorter than the canal of Briare, and has twenty
locks and sluices ; by this canal the inhabitants per-
form, in their bateaux-coches, a voyage to the neigh-
bouring towns, and even to the city of Paris itself.
These vehicles set out at stated times arKi places, for
the conveyance of goods and passengers, which arc
transported a long distance at a small expense, and
are covered over with canvas or tarpaulin. .

The canal of Bourbon has been but lately under-
taken ; it is intended to join, by this canal, the river
Oise to go to Paris ; to prevent, as far as possible, a
scarcity in that city.

The junction of the river Somme with the Oise, by
means of a canal which is called the canal of Picardy,
affords a ready conveyance to Paris for the grain of
Picardy, the sea coal, wood, butter, copper, and
spices from the northern provinces of the kingdom,
and from Holland. This canal begins at St. Quintin,
and is cut to near the ' town of Ham, on the river
Somme, whence it crosses the country into the river
Oise, near to Lafere, from whence vessels proceed
down that river to Cbauny, where the river is navi-
gable into the Seine, and so to Paris, and by Rouen
10 the sea.

From' the town of Landau a canal is cut into the
Rhine, near the city of Spires, which is called the
canal of Landau*

INLAND NAVIGATION* 63

I come n^xtto describe the canal of Languedoc, or,
as it is called also, the canal of the Two Seas, which
forms a junction between the ocean and the Mediter-
y, ranean, and was first projected under Francis I. but
flf .begun and finished under Louis XIV. It docs
honour to the able minister Colbert, and to Riquet
the engineer, who conducted the work.

This amazing undertaking was begun in 1 666, and
finished in l681 ; it has answered every expectation
formed of it, and also established a ready communi-
cation between the two fertile provinces, Guienne and
Languedoc. This canal reaches from Narbonne to
Thoulouse ; it receives several little rivers as feeders
in the way, and is provided, at proper intervals, with
114 locks and sluices. In some places it is conveyed
by aqueducts over bridges of incredible height and
strength, which, under them, give passage to other
rivers.

What appeared most extraordinary at that time
was, that near the town ,o( Be.ziers it was conveyed
under a mountain by a tunnel (a method which is
now common) 720 feet in length, cut into a lofty
arcade, for the most part lined with freestone, except-
ing towards the ends, where it is only hewn through
the rock, which is of a sulphurous substance. The
expense of this work was 13,000,000 of livres, about
540,000 pounds sterling, of which the king contri-
buted 7,000,000, and the province of Languedoc
the rest. .

A concise description of this-great work, the won-
der of Europe, cannot be unacceptable, as by it
modern engineers and projectors of inland naviga-
tions may be encouraged to encounter all difficulties
that may oppose their patriotic labours.
2

64 iNtAND NAVIGATIOI^.

This canal begins at Cette, in the bay of LangnedoC!^
and passes through lake Thau to the town of Agde,
where is a round canal or bason, with three openings
and three different depths of water meeting there,
and the gates or locks are of such ingenious construc-.*^]jJ
tion that the vessels may pass through by opening
cither of them, which the master pleases. A con-
trivance which excited admiration in the great Vau-
ban himself.

Not far from Beziers, and beyond the tunnel
already mentioned, arc eight locks, which form a
grand and regular cascade 960 feet long, and by
which the vessels cross the river Orb, and, continu-
ing their voyage on the canal, pass the towns of
Beuers, Argcno, Tresbes, Orbiell, Alzenne,. Y^ll^-
pinte, into a large bason near to Castlenaudury, which
receives the river Laudet. At St. P^erriol, near the
town of Reuel, Mr. Riquet constructed a reservoir
to supply the canal, containing 595 acres of water,
which is first embanked, and then the embankment
walled round with freestone between two rocky moun-
tains. Under this dam runs a vaulted arch or sewer,
reaching to the main wall, where three large cocks
of cast brass are turned, opened or shut by iron bars ;
these cocks discharge the water through their mouths,
which are as large as a man s body, into the aque-
ducts, and the basoi^ at Narouse, w^hich is the head
of the navigation. The canal then descends from
Narousc, by Avignenel, Montesquieu, and Baziege,
into the river Garonne by three locks, a quarter of a
mile below the city of Thoulouse, which it passes*
Its breadth is 144 feet, towing paths included ; it is
six feet deep, and 64 French leagues long. It is hecc
to be observed, that Narouse is the highest part of the

INLANB NAVIGATION. 65

l^avigatiCMi, being 600 feet above the level of the
two waters, from whence the ground has almost one
continued descent on each side. On this spot, as
^ before observed, Mn Riquet made his bason or
'l^i^rand reservoir, and collected his waters; and hither
' he brought lus current of water from the adjacent
mountain, by An aqueduct five leagues in length,
which contained near 60OO cubic inches, and this .
stream being distributed in the two canals last men-
tioned, forms altogether a body of 6,000,000 cubic
feet of water*

When a barge or other vessel in its passage from
Narbonne, after it has passed through the canal of
the plain, arrives at the foot of one of these locks,
the gates are instantly opened, and the water, so
hemmed in, tushes forth with great violence, and
mixing with that in the canal, forms a level ; the
vessel then sails into the lock, and the gates are shut
again ; the water then descends from the.upper lock
till full, seldom less than seven feet or more than
twelve ; the vessel again rises with it tiH on a level
with the water in the next lock, by which means a ves-
sel coming from Narbonnc may pass, without any
obstruction, out of the first lock into the secofid, or
one coming from Thoulouse may be introduced out
of tBe second lock into the first, the gates of the
;second lock being shut. The vessel in the same
manner mounts into the third, and thus ascends
from lock to lock till it comes to the top of distribu-
tion, and is by the same manner conveyed down to
Thoulouse. To preserve the level, they have fre-
quently turned and winded the canal round hills and
rising grounds, and fortified it with an immense
number of piles where the earth was likely to, give

66 INLAND NAVIGATION.

way. This canal is conveyed by water bridges an J
stone arches over valleys ; hilh and mountains have
been levelled, while through others a passage has
been cut and arched over, large enough for loaded
vessels to pass under, with lights and air holes at
proper distances. v,

Above 12,000,000 of cubic feet of earth, and
more than 30,000 cubic feet of solid rock, have been
removed to excavate its bed ; it has on it 114 locks ;
sixteen prodigious large mounds have been raised
to divert the course of useless waters, and twenty-four
large spacious drains have been made to empty it
when in danger of being too full. On a moderate
computation there are above 240,000 cubic feet of
stone-work in these erections, including a projection
into the sea of 200 fathoms, and a pier of 5000
fathoms more, which secures the port of Cette, and
renders it a very commodious harbour, the advan-
tage of which is the greater, as the coast of Langue-
doc has no havens whatever, and is very dangerous.

The expence of this astonishing work was nothing
in comparison with its wonderful utility.

Notwithstanding France abounds with canals,
which Intersect the country and join not only rivers
but seas to each other, to the great improvement of
the internal parts of the kingdom, and the encou-
' ragement of the husbandman and manufacturer,
who thus find a cheap, easy, and ready conveyance
for their produce to a market, and the metropolis ;
yet have we seen her, immediately on the conclusion
of the American war, after the very active part she
had taken in it, turning her attention to the advan-
tages which Holland derives from her inland com-
merce : she is now imitating her example, and, at a ,

most enormous expence, actually cutting three canals
or branches of great length to join the most navi-
gable rivers for the improvement of trade and manu-
^ factures. On reduction of the army and na^7 in
1782, these canals were immediately begun, to give
employment tr the disbanded soldiers and seamen,
that those useful members of Society might not be
forced to emigrate to foreign countries, languish in
idleness, or starve in prisons ; or what is wofse, through
want and necessity, perhaps, come to an untimely
end.

It would fill a volume to particularise the Canals
in France ; I, therefore, shall only just mention them
as briefly as possible, that those who are curious, and
have a map of that country before them, may ob-*
serve with what labour and expence they hax^e already
promoted trade and commerce, by intersecting the
country with canals.

The first of the above mentioned three canals will
extend from Chalon-sur-Saone to the town of Digoin
op the Loire, being 21 leagues, and fofm a junction
with the river Saone, and the Rhone with the Loire.
It is to be called the canal of Dehunc.

The course of the second canal will be from St*
Jean-de-FAune to the village of Roch, between St.
Flotentin and Joigny, a space of fifty- two leagues.
It is to be called the canal of Burgundy, and will
open a communication between the Saone, the Rbine^
the Yonne, and the Seine.

The third canal will begin at the village of St.
Symphorin, on the Saone, a little above St. Jean-de-
TAune on the opposite sTiofc, to the town of Dole,
on the river Doubs, and passing the city of Besahqon^
will be continued belotV Strasburg, and form a juncr

F 2

68 INLAI^D NA-triGATlON.

tion of the Saone with the Rhone, and the III with
the Rhine. A great part of this canal is finished,
and is called the canal of Neuf-brissac, and falls into
the river 111. All these three great undertakings will
be soon completed.'

By tliese navigable canals there will be an easy,
cheap, safe, and certain conveyance of goods from
Marseilles, the Mediterranean, Italy, and Switzer-
land, to the bay of Biscay and tl)e Ocean, and also
to Holland and Germany, as well as to Flanders,
and all the Austrian Netherlands ; and during any
future war with England, France will be able to
supply, by them, her dock yards at Marseilles and
Toulon, as also her grand arsenal and dock-yards at
Brest and Rochfort, with all sorts of stores and com-
modities from the Baltic, without hazarding a voyage
by sea ; whereas they are now obliged to be brought
from the Baltic down the English Channel to Brest,
and through the straits of Gibraltar to Toulon, at
the utmost risk of being captured by our ships of
war and privateers, or they must go north about,
which is a long and dangerous voyage.

Since the canal of Languedoc has proved of such
advantage to the town of Cette and the adjacent
country, other places have been induced to copy the
example. From Cette another canal has been made,
called the canal of Grave, which goes into the lake
Mauguis near the city of Montpellier ; and another
canal out of the said lake to the town of Lunel, called
the canal of Lunel.

There is another canal cutting out of the bay of
Languedoc, through two small lakes, to the town of
Bcaufaire on the Rhone.

)

INLAND NAVIGATION. 69

There is also another canal out of this canal,
which proceeds to the village of Guveral, into the
river Little Rhone.

Another from the town of Tarascon, on the
Hhone, to the town of Aries on the same river, and
down into the lake which falls into the bay near the
mouth of the Rhone. It is called the canal of
Boue.

Two others proceed from this canal, one near the
town of Aries, the other at the head of the aforesaid
laie ; the latter is called the canal of Crapone, and
goes into the river Durance, near Mirandol.

There are three other canal? out of this river, near
the city of Avignon ; onq is called the canal of
Crillon, another that of Real, and the third that of
Boisgelin.

Arfother canal is cut but of the above near to
Eyguires, into the great lake Berre, near the village
of Istris, and which passes by the village of Salon.

Another is cut out of the other side of the afore-
said lake to the village of Pailiasent ; these two canals
being into and out of the garne lake are called canal
Little Crapone.

These canals are all in the southern parts of France,
I shall now enumerate those in the northern part ;
and first begin with ihe canal from Dunkirk to Fumes,
called the canal of Dunkirk. There is another canal
from Dunkirk to Bergues called by the same name.

Another from Bergues to Fumes, called the canal
of Furnes ; another from Furnes to Nieuport, called
the canal of Nieuport.

Another proceeds from Bergues, by the village of
Colmc, to St. Omcr's, and is called the canal of
Berguc ; this canal is continued from St. Omer*§ into

70 INLAND NAVIGATIOir.

the river Lys, at the town pf Aire, and is called the
canal of Aire.

Another, cut in the year 168I, begins just above
the town of Calais, ' and is carried across the country
into a river near to the town of Audriue, which runs
down to Gravelines, These canals intersect the
country, and are not only useful for navigation but
for draining the low country, which otherwise would
be a useless bog, and covered with ^yater, whereas
by these means it is rendered one of the most fruitful
countries in Europe,

A canal communication by locks is made between
the towns of Lens, Lijle, Douay, and the rivers
Upper and Lower Deule, the Scarpe and the Scheldt.
From the city of Lisle, the canal takes a course near
La Bisse and Lens to Douay, and is called the canal
of Lisle and Douay, from thence it returns and goes
out of the Scarpe, passes near Marchienne, and joins
the Scarpe again at the town of St. Amand, from
which it returns back with a very acute angle three
parts of the way to Douay, and parallel oh the
other side of the Scarpe, and is called the canal of
Tritaire, .

Many other parts of the kingdom have canals of
communicarion. Three canals are cut out of the
small river Bonne, near the city of Grenoble^ and
another is cut lower down that river, which goes out
of the river Drac, and is called the canal of Merbeys.

A small canal is. cut out of the river Pau, near
to the ,city of Pau, and is called the canal of
liCster,

Another is cut out of the river Adour, near the
village of Barcelonne, and goe? to the town of
Adour,

INLAND NAVIGATION. 7I

There is a . canal cut out of the bay of Rochelle^
to the town of Lucon, and near the same place the
course of another canal is marked out from the
mouth of the river Saigre, into the river Claine, near
the city of Poitiers; this, when finished, is to be
called the canal of Poitou.

The canal of Monsieur is cut out of the Loire at
Chalonne, aod passes by Layon Thouarce to Mar-
ligne. 440ther is cut out of the fork of that river
at Maycnnc, near the town of Angiers, and pro-
ceeds to the town of Auchion.
' A short canal is cut out of the bay opposite the
island of Bellisle to the town of Vannes.

These canals already finished, measure in length
858,000 toiscs, being 1,939 English miles.

Besides the already mentioned canals, which are
finished, many others are projected in order to find
employment for the soldiery. I shall here enumerate
some of them which have come within my own ob-
servation.

From the city of Valenciennes a canal is marked
out to pass by Quesnoy, into the river Sambre, near
the town of Bcrlarmont, to be called the canal of
Quesnoy.

From the village of HennecQurt, a canal is marked
out nearCambray on the river Scheldt, to join the
canal before mentioned at St. Quentin, called the
canal of Picardy. This is intended to go from
St. Quentin to Sissy on the Oise, and to be called
the canal of Sauterin. This canal will join the
Scheldt with the Oise.

Another canal is marked out higher up the Oise at
the town of Guise, to join it to the Sambre at Fcr-
oey near the town of Landrecy.

72 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Another from the Oise, below the canal of Pi-
cardy, at Chauny, to go to Laon^ and return with a
sharp angle into the river Vette at Onisy, is. to be
called the canal of Laon.

From the river Somme, near the city of Amiens,
a canal is marked out to pass by Corbie, Bray, and
Peronne, to Ham ; and join the canal of Picardy near
the last town, which consequently joins the Somme
with the Oise.

Another is marked out from the Oise at the vil-
lage of Criel, below Compiegne, to the town of
Bevois, and to be called the canal of Bevois.

Four are marked out near the city of Paris ; one
from the Oise, at the Isle Adam, to cut into the
elbow of the Seine at St. Dennis, arid then out of
the river straight to Paris ; another is marked out from
the Seine across the country into the river Mome
at Gournay ; a third is marked out from an elbow
of the Seine above St. Dennis to Paris, and the fourth .
is marked out from Versailles intp the Seine at the
elbow at Sevres near to Paris.

A canal is marked out to join the Meuse at the
inllage of Pagney, with the Moselle at the town of
Toul.

A canal is marked out at Cosney on the Loire,
to join the Yonne at the village of Swai, to go
down that river to the Seine, to be called the canal
of Cosney,

A canal is marked out from the little river Love,
at the village of Lignon, to join the canal of Bur-
gundy at Dijon,

A canal is marked out from the Rhone at-Gcissial,
to fall into the lake of Geneva at Versoix^ to btj
called the canal of Vcj'soi:j5,

IKLANB NAVIGATION. 73

A canal. is marked out from the Loire at the town
of Saumur to Moncontoiir, to be called the canal
of Dessechement.

A very large and long canal is marked out from the
bay near the city of Marseilles, to pass by Gardanc,
and near the city of Aix, to the' villages of Foutou-
ble and Lambeste, and to return with an acute angle
into the river Durance, near the fork where the river
Verdon goes out of that river ; this is to be called the
canal of Provence. A small canal is already finish-
ed, cut out of the Durance to the small town of
Pertuis ; it is called the canal of Durance.

A canal is marked out of the river Ter, in the
same bay, and is intended to pass the city of Per-
pignan to the village of Millas, and another is
marked out .from. the city of Pcrpignan, into lake
Nazaire at the village Salcos,

If we now pass to the other side of the kingdom,
we shall find a canal marked out from the Garonne
at the village of Instres, into the river Leyre at
Bellin, which is to be called the canal of Autre.

Another oyt of the Garonne at the city of Bour-
deaux, into a lake called Bassin^de-Arcachon, and
to proceed from one corner of it at the village of
Jjai Tete-de-Bouc, into the sea, to be called the canal
of Bourdea\ix.

Several others are marked out and projected, too
tedious and perhaps uninteresting to mention ; we
may however observe, from the enumeration already
given, with what care and assiduity the French na-
tion are improving every internal part of their king-
dom by C4nal§ cx;t frgm one river into another, and
^ven into the Ocean and Mediterranean.

The lengths of these difFercat canals added togc-

yA INLAND NAVIGATION.

thcr m^ke 450,000 toiscs, or 545 English miles ; an
^amazing extent of country to improve by inland na-
vigation.

I cannot omit to mention before I leave the sub-
ject of France, another magnificent work of Louis
XIV. as if his grand canal were not enough to im- '
mortalize his name. I mean the famous aqueduct
that he built near Maintenon, for carrying the river
Bure to Versailles, from one inountain to anodier,
across a valley which contains 240 arcades, and is
7,000 toises, or nearly eight and half English miles
long, and raised to such an elevation that it certain-
ly is altogether the greatest piece of modern architec-
ture in the world,

1798. I have the highest pleasure to inform my
countrymen, that a friend of Mr. Fulton's has just
informed me that his small canal system, and his
double in.clined planes, have converted all the French
engineers to his plan, and that he has actually just
received a patent for 1 5 years for his invention, and
the first piece of six leagues is just begun at Dreux,
60 miles from Paris. I have not the pleasure to
know Mr. Fulton, but most heartily congratulate
my countryman, and wish him the greatest success.
. 1802. Peace begins to diffuse new vigour into
the minds of the trading part of the French nation.
It is now in agitation to join the Rhone to the Rhine
and lake of Geneva, for the purpose of opening
a communication between Marseilles and Amster-
dam. This canal will unite Basle and Frankfort ;
the Meurthe, the Meuse, perhaps, and the Rhine are
also to be joined. Bonaparte is indefatigably em-
ployed in finding useful employment for the troops,
for as he hates idleness himself, he cannot bear to

•/t

INLilND NAVIGATION. 75

«ee it in others, and he well, knows it is the mother
of mischief and insurrection.

July 1802. The French government are prepar-
ing to open canals m the Netherlands to employ the
soldiery, and the mercantile interests of France arc-
looking forward with the greatest anxiety to a com-
mercial treaty with England. The impolicy of the
prohibiting acts, from which France has suffered so
much, is now generally admitted ; and although
Kantes, Bourdeaux, &c. in their petitions are antici-
pating their ruin, they all look up for relief and ex-
tension of trade to the wisdom and care of the First
Consul, whose unwearied application to promote busi-
ness and trade in every part of the republic is well
known to every individual.

The First Consul, ever ready to encourage under-
takings useful to the people, considering that all the
water used at Paris is brought by water carriers, and
in case of fire inevitable destruction and great loss
must ensue, has given orders for a survey to the little
river Buzeg or Bureg, in order to its being brought to
Paris in the same manner as the New River is brought
to London, and which was begun on the 22d Septem-
ber, 1 802, it is intended to be laid into the streets
and houses by pipes, fire plugs, and engines, to clean
the streets as well as to accontimodate the houses.

SPAIN.

Spain is a vast body without a substance, which
has greater riches than strength. The mines of
Mexico and Potosi furnish that kingdom with means
to purchase every thing except liberty ; but bigotry
md superstition, together with the Inquisitioi?, pre-

76 INLAND NAVIGATION.

vent the subjects of other countries from emigrating
to it, and population is far from being encouraged.
The pride of the Spaniards tvill not permit them to
cultivate their lands, which are some of the finest in
Europe, nor to apply themselves to commerce ; and
notwithstanding their riches, their country is barren,
and the body of the people poor.

History informs us that it has frequently been pro-
posed in Spain, to cut a canal through the isthmus
of Darien from Panama to Nombre-de-Dios, to
effect a passage between the Atlantic and South
Seas, and thus open a straight passage to China and
the East Indies ; but the project appears to have
been considered as chimerical, and treated with ridi-
cule. It cannot indeed be supposed that the Spani-
ards would neglect to furnish their own country
with canals, of which it is really in want, and yet
wish to improve, by means of such works, a colony,
and that a barren mountainous country, at 3,000
miles distance, and principally for the use of others.

Spain however has attempted something in the ,
way of canals to improve the internal part of the
country ; but very much is wanted to complete them
and to render them useful and profitable ; though
in any other country in Europe (Turkey and Portu-
gal excepted) similar undertakings would very soon
have been brought to perfection.

In 1785 the famous canal of Arragon began to
justify the hopes entertained of it ; since the reign
of Charles V. some small vessels from Tudela ar-
rived at Saragossa, where they were received with
the greatest demonstrations of joy.

Don Ramon-Pignatelli did not think he derogated .
from the high dignity of an ecclesiastic, nor from

INLAND NAVIGATION. 77

that of his illustrious birth, in devoting his studies
to the service of his country ; he presides over this
undertaking, which, when accomplished, will open
a new conveyance to the productions of Arragon,
one of the provinces of Spain the most favoured by
nature, and yet one of the least productive relative-
ly to its extent. Two canals, that of Taustre, and
the Imperial Canal, both of which begin at Navarre,
and have the same depth of water, run in various
windings through Arragon, and by turns recede
from oT approach the river Ebro, till they at length
fall into it. These streams are the sources of in-
dustry to all the districts through which they flow,
and render their fields fertile.

The province of Arragon is already planted with
thousands of olive and other trees; the cities and
towns which formerly were condemned to drought
and scarcity, are now supplied with fish and water by
these canals.

The rivers which, from the north of Navarre and
Arragon, formerly emptied their waters into the
Ebro, will contribute to the flourishing condition of
the countries they have hitherto uselessly watered, as
soon as the Ebro can receive the merchandise they
bring. This undertaking has been effected by la-
bours which deserve no less admiration than that
excited by the wonders of the canal of Languedoc ;
for, besides the dykes, banks and sluices, with the
larger and smaller bridges, which the two canals in
their course rendered necessary, there has been con-
structed in the valley of Riozalon, an aqueduct 710
fathoms in length, and seventeen feet thick at the
base in which the canal runs.

Another canal, in which very slow progress is

78 INLAND JfAtlGAriaN*

made, is cut out of the rivet Pisuerga, which runs
from north to south, the waters of which it was in-
tended should be made to supply the canal of Cas-
tile, projected and begun in the last reign. This
project was afterwards almost abandoned, to the great
prejudice of Old Castile, which only waits fof such
an opportunity for the sale and increase of its pro-
ductions. The canal was to begin at Segovia^ and
follow the course of the river Eresma, which falls into
the river Duero, to be continued as far north as
Reynosa, receiving from the little rivers in its passage
the tribute of their waters. Reynosa is only twenty
leagues from St. Ander, a sea port where all the
merchandise exported from Old Castile is shipped ;
a road (which will be destroyed before the canal is
finished) has been made in order to facilitate a com-
munication by land.

This undertaking, once regarded as the wild pro-
jects of the queen, will, in all probability, at a distant
period, be accomplished, provided Spain has the
wisdom not to engage herself in wars.

This, canal begins at Segovia, sixteen leagues
north of Madrid, and is separated from the southern
canal by the chain of mountains which we passed at
Guadarama.

From Segovia, quitting the Eresma, it crosses the
Pisuerga, near Vallodolid, at the junction of that
river with the Duero ; then leaving Palencia, with
the Carion to the right, till it has crossed that
river below Herrera, twelve leagues from Reynosa^
receiving water from that river in its course, it
arrives at Golmin ; from thence, in less than a
quarter of a league, to Reynosa^ there is a fall of
1000 Spanish feet.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 7^

At Reynosa is the communication with the canal
of Arragon, which unites the- Mediterranean to the
bay of Biscay ; and from Reynosa to the Suanzes,
which is three leagues, there is a fall of 3000 feet.

Above Palencia is a branch going westward through
Bcceril- de-Campos, Rio-Seco, and Benevento, to
Zemora, making this canal of Castile in its whole
extent 140 leagues.

They have already completed twenty leagues of it*«.
from Reynosa to Rio-Seco ; which, with twenty-
four locks, three bridges for aqueducts, and one
league and half open cast through a high mountain,
has cost thirty-eight millions of reals, or 380,0001.
sterling, and this, supposing the twenty leagues equal
to eighty-eight miles, is 43181. per mile. For work
executed in so complete a manner this sunn is cer«
tainly not extravagant.

To expedite this arduous undertaking they employ
2000 soldiers, and 2000 peasants.

The soldiers receive three reals a day, besides their
pay, when they work by the day ; but they generally
work task-work.

To regulate the prices they have three tables :
1st, for the quality; 2nd, the depth; 3rd, the dis-
tance ; all founded on experiments. The qualities
are, first, sand ; second, soft clay; third, hard clay;
fourth, loose schist ; fifth, hard schist and solid rock,
©f which they make three distinctions, viz. such as
can be worked, first, with pick-axe and shovel ;
second, by wedges and sledges; third, by boring
and blast ; this last, again, is subject to distinctions.

The canal is fifty-six feet wide at top, twenty
feet at bottom, and nine feet deep, and when per-
/ected, which will be not much less than thirty years,
there will be no comparison with it in any part of

80 lNLANl> NAVlGATIOIf.

the world, cither in point of workmanship, extent, of
utility*.

Spain owes to the sovereigns of the house of
Bourbon the few roads and canals she possesses.
We have already mentioned the canal of Arragon *
and that of Castile ; the canal of Murcia next claims
our attention, the completion of which has been
found impracticable ; the subscribers, instead of the
profit which their avidity grasped at, must content
themselves with the interest the king pays them.

In the year 1784 the minister formed a project
much more brilliant and useful than that which he
was obliged to abandon. A canal was planned, which,
beginning at the foot of the mountains of Guadar-
rama, near the Escurial, should proceed to join the
Tagus, afterwards the Guadiana, and terminate at this
Guadalquivir, above Anduxar; and which conse-
quently will give new life and activity to the interior
parts of Spain, the least populous and most barren
of the kingdom. A Frenchman of abilities, Le
Maur, gave in the plan, and was preparing to carry
it into execution, but died soon after. The impulse,
however, was given, the money subscribed, and the
estimate made, and the undertaking is conrinued by
the sons of Le.Majar, who inherit from their father
all his plans' and a great portion of his talents.

In May, 1?85, the bank made a proposal, the
admission of which will find new employment of
its funds, and add the encouragement of security ;
this was to undertake to complete the canal above
mentioned. The bank offered to make the necessary
advances for this great undertaking, upon the same
conditions on which it received the contract for vie-

• Townshcnd'8 Travels, 179^..

mLkm^ NAVIGATI03T. . 8 1

tuaJHng and clothing the troops, and the proposul
was accepted by government, who immediately em-
ployed Le Maur, nor did the unexpected death of
that able engineer suspend the work, it being carried
on by his sons, as before mentioned.

Another canal was begun under the administration
of M- de Grimaldi, to join the river Manzanares to
the Tagus ; scarcely were three leagues of it finished
¥<hen want of capital and of industry suspended the
works. The only advantage derived from it is, the
produce of a few mills ; and this is absorbed in the
repairs of bridges and sluices, and the salaries of the
persons employed. But the activity now given to all
branches of administration will soon have its eiFect on
the canal of Manzanares; the mills upon it are already
useful to the undertakings of the bank charged with
victualling the army; and the canal itself will in
a short time become a part of that which, as has
been already observed, is to cross the interior parts
of Spain.

In 1785, General O'Reilly, governor of Cadisfi^
employed M. Bournial, whom he sent for from France,
to bring fresh water to Cadiz, from springs at the
distance of eleven leagues ; but on General O'Reilly's
disgrace the scheme was abandoned, although M.
fiournial had surveyed and taken the levels, and
finished the plans; and, to engage the narion to
carry it on, had, on opening the ground, found
and traced the remains of an old canal or aqueduct, .
without doubt dug' by the Romans for the same
purpose.

The internal parts of Spain are as capable of
receiving the improvements of inland navigation as
any country in Europe, and there is no country in

82 , INLAND NAVIGATION.

the world to which they are more necessary. The
great rivers Ebro, Guadalquivir, Guadiana, Tagus^
Duero^ and Minho^rise in the middle of the kingdom,
and run into the Ocean and Mediterranean ; and there
are besides many others of less note, from which
navigable canals might be made to intersect the in*
terior parts of the country, at a very reasonable ex-
pence, the profits of which undertakings would be
immense, for it will scarcely be believed, that even iii
this enlightened age, the Spaniards carry the pro-
ductions of the interior parts of the country, which
chiefly consist of wine and oil, in large leather hot-
ties, on the backs of mules and asses, from one pro<-
vince to another. Grain is also conveyed in the
same manner to dift'erent parts of the country, which
produce none, although the climate is perhaps the
finest in the world.

An Englishman would scarcely be able to restrain
his indignation at seeing the gifts of Providence so
abused, when very little assistance from art is required
to complete what nature has so abundantly lavished.

The author of this history was in treaty with
Prince Masserano, when he was ambassador at the
British court from Spain, to go with a number of
workmen from England, if they could have obtained
permission from government, to make common
sewers through the city of Madrid, and pave it after
the manner of London, which improvement it is in
great want of, and also to survey the country, in
order to improve it with canals ; but a war with Spain
soon after succeeded, the Spaniards having joined
the Americans, and acknowledged their indepen-
dence, just as application was intended to be made

INLAKB KAVI(»ATIOKb 83

for the permission of the English government^ and
the scheme was rendered abortive.

The kingdom of Spain, according to Ustariz, Con-
tsuns about 7,500,000 inhabitants, and would be
able to support twice that number, were it properly
cultivated, its manufactures encouraged, and its mines
worked. It contained, in the time of the Goths and
Moors, near 30,000,000 of people* Inconsiderable
too as the number of inhabitants now iS| yet they
ore also very poor, although they live in a land
capable of supporting many millions more in plenty^
and which, besides its natural advantages, has im-
mense sums of money poured in from America,

Savala, in his Treatise Del Commercio de las
Indas, computes that from the year 1492, when
America was first discovered, to 1731, above six
thoxisand millions of pieces of eight, in registered
gold and silver, have been imported into Spain, ex-
clusive of far greater sums unregistered, and tbovo
500,000 Spaniards have jemigrated to that country
in hopes and in search of riches, who have never
returned, which has greatly assisted to decrease the
population of old Spain. But as these remarks may
appear somewhat foreign to my tc^ject, I shall pro*
ceed, acciM'ding to my plan first laid down, to pro^
secYite my enquiries coaccnuog the canals of £i9gland«

«2

S4 INLAND NAViaATIONp

K ,

SECTION VIL

jIn ahrldged getieral Defcription of the Canals of Rug"
^ land. — Canal of Caerdyke the most ancient. — Canal
'^ of Sandown — Castle Kent. — Canals in the great
Levels and Fens. — The New Biver.— The Duke of
Bridgewaters Canal, being the first modem Canal
* made in England. — Difficulties sutrviounted in the
Execution of this Work. — Particulars of the Life of
the ingenious Mr. Brindley, his Grace's Engineer
employed in this great fFork, &c. &c. &c.

JCiNGLAND, in which all the arts and sciences,
commerce, and agriculture especially flourish, is an
island containing numerous rivers, rendered naviga-
ble by art, where not so by nature. The rivers
Thames, Trent^ Severn, and Mersey, extend far
into the country ; and almost divide the island into
four parts ; yet, though four of the principal parts
of, the kingdom, London^ Bristol, Liverpool,- and
Hull, are commodiously situated on these, great ri-
vers, and incessantly crowded with innumerable
vessels laden with the richest productions of the
different countries of the world, none of these great
commercial ports had, for a long time, any com-
munication with each other except by a tedious and
circuitous navigation, or a tiresome and expensive
land carriage ; and though we had for example Hol-
land and France so near us, well furnished with

INLMi^D . BTAyiGATION. 85

canals for inland navigation, executed and attended;
wkh the greatest advantage, because by them a sale:
was procured for a variety of productions of the inter-:
/nal parts of those countries, which were before useless^,
or consumed only in the place of their growth ; yet
neither government, nor any public spirited indir
vidual attempted any works of that nature in Eng-,
land • ."*:....

■ To ibc insular situation of Great Britain, and its-
numerous large and navigable rivers, we may no
doubt justly attribute the long neglccjSof canal na-.
Tigation in this country. A private undertaking of
this kind was at length begun by a noble Duke,
during the continuanfce of an expensive but glori-
ous war, in Which; cbaquest crowned, in the most
signal manner, almost every effort of the British
arms in every part of the globe.

Peace succeeding, a full ride of commerce, and
its conccHnitant, wealth, poured into England from
every quarter of the world ; and new sources of
trade and riches being opened, a general emulation
was excited among our manufacturers to rival and
surpass, if possible, those of other countries.

The success of the noble individual above men-
tioned, who planned and began the first canal for
inland navigation in this country, by drawing a min^
of wealth from the bowels of a mountain which had
hitherto . been totally useless and of no value,
awakened a general ardour for similar improve-
ments, among the land owners, farmers, merchants
and manufacturers of the kingdom ) and although
there was not a Lewis XIV. nor a Colbert to en-
courage them, there wanted not engineers, equal to
Ri<juet 5 and England, though hie, began to rouso

80 IKtAVB NAVI6ATI0K.

from her lethargic slumber, and pour forth the
riches which she possessed in her inland provinces ;
to effect which her navigable rivers alone, however
numerous and large^ were found to be inadquate.

In treating of the canals of England, Caerdyke^
if it noay be properly called a canal, ought perhaps
first to be mentioned, as it is the most ancient ; but
whether it was intended fot the purposes of inland
navigation, it is impossible for me to determine, dif«
ferent authors having assigned to it different uses ;
but as it is Cut from the river Nyne a little below
Peterborough in Northamptonshire, into the river
Witham three miles below Lincoln, there is great
reason to suppose it was intended to join those two
rivers. It was probably a work of the Romans, and
was 40 miles in length, though now almost filled up^
and must have been very deep, some authors sup*
pose it to have been cut by the Danes. Moreton
will have it to be made under the emperor Domitian,
as urns and medals have been dug up near it, which
seem to confirm this opinion.

The next that appears to attract otu* attention is
the remains of a canal from Sandown Castle in Kent,
into the sea. I will repeat it as mentioned by Smea-
ton in his treatise on Ramsgate harbour, it being
short.

In the time of King Edward VI. (says he) it is
said there was an attempt to make a harbour from
Sandwich into the Downs, and that the evident
traces of a canal, which are still subsisting in the
level grounds between Sandwich and Sandown Cas*
tie, are the remains of that attempt. It is also said
that commissioners were appmnted by Queen £liM»
beth in 1574 to take a suitey of Sudwich baven^

INLAND MAVIGATIOir* 87

and to give their opinion as to the making a better
harbour near the old canal at Sandown Castle.

I might perhaps be thought remiss if I did not
notice Kinderfly's and Badslade's reports and objec-
tions of the ancient and present state (1751) of the
inland navigations on the great level of the Fens
which extend nearly through six counties, viz. Lin-
coln, Norfolk, Suffolk* Cambridge, Huntingdon and
Northampton, being 6o miles in length, and 40
miles in breadth, containing about 600,000 acres.

The canal for supplying London with water, com-
monly called the New Rpver, next claims our atten-
tion. This was projected and begun by Mr. (after-
wards Sir H\igh) Middleton in the year i608, and
finished in five years. This canal begins near Ware
in Hertfordshire, and takes a course of 6o miles be-
fore it reaches the grand cistern or reservoir at Isling-
ton, which supplies the multitude of pipes that con-
vey the water into the city and parts adjacent. In
some places it is 30 feet deep ;; and near Hornsey it
was formerly conveyed over a valley between two
hills, by means of a wooden trough supported by
wooden props, and 23 feot in height ; but of late
years the course of the river has been changed and
embanked. In other places, meandering round hil-
locks and rising grobnds, it is confined on one side
by the solid hill, and on the other by banks very
large and thick, or large mounds.

The different rivers which have been made navi,-
gable by art, above the tide-ways, do not come
within my plan. The first modern canal therefore
that claims attention, as being the 6rst public work
of the kind executed in England, although com-
pleted at the cxpence of a private individual, is that

88 INLAND NAVIGATION;

made' by his Grace the Duke of Bridgewater, in wtiose
praise it would, be unpardonable to be silent, who,
at an age too often spent in dissipation by oiir young
nobility, applied his attention to useful objects, and
had the spirit to hazard so great a part of his fortune
in an undertaking worthy the pursuits of a p-ince,
which, however, has ultimately proved highly pro-
fitable to himself and beneficial to his country.
When the influence of exalted rank and large pos-
sessions are thus nobly and usefully exerted, they
confer additional histre on the possessors, who then
justly merit being ranked artiong the first citizens of
their country.

His Grace had the honour as well as pleasure of
having first introduced inland navigation into this
kingdom) the. utility of which is so sensibly known
and felt, that it is at length, to the profit and hap-
piness of this country, encouraged by the nobility
and land owners in most of the interior parts of the
country. It would also be unpardonable to with-
hold the praise so justly due. to the penetration of
this illustrious nobleman, for having called forth the
hidden talents of. a Brindley ; talents, which, but for
his Grace, would have been lost to this country.

In the years 1758 and i7^9y his Grace the Duke
of Bridgewater, after obtaining two acts of Parliament
for that purpose, projected, began, and executed,
under the direction of his engineer, Mr. Brindley,
his first canal, which was designed for conveying
coals from a mine, or more properly a mountain, on
his Grace's estate, to Manc)iester, but has since
been applied to many other useful purposes of inland
navigation. This canal begins at a place called
MJ^lty Mill, seven computed miles from !Manr

IHLAHD NATI6ATJ0N. 89

Chester, where the Duke has cut a bason capable of
holding not only all his boats, but a great body of
water, which serves as a reservoir, or head of hiar
navigation. The canal runs through a hill, by a sub-
terraneous passage, big enough for the admission o£
long flat bottomed boats, which are towed by hand-
rails on each side, near three quarters of a mile under
ground to the coal works. There the passage divides
into two channels, one of which goes 500 ) ards to
the right, and the other as many to the left, and
both may be continued at pleasure.

The passage is in some places cut out of solid
rock^ and in others arched over with brick. Air
funnels, some of which are . thirty-seven yards per-
pendicular, are cut at certaip distances through the
rock to the top of the hill ; the arch at the entrance
is six feet wide, and five ftet bigh^ above the surface
of the water. It widens within, so that in proper
places the boats can pass each other, and at the pit
is ten £c^ wide. The coals are brought to this canal
in little low waggons that hold a ton each, and, as
the work is on the descent, are very easily pulled
along by a man on a railway, to a stage over the
canal, and then shot into one of the boats, each of
which holds eight tons. They then, by means of
the rails, are drawn out by one man, into the bason,
at the mouth, (a boy of seventeen years of age has
worked twenty-one of these boats at a time, which,
at eight tons each, is 1 68 tons) then five or six of
them are linked together, and drawn along the canal
by one horse or two mules, on the banks or towing*
paths : it is there broad enough for the barges to go
abreast ; and in the course of nine miles (a circuit
pftwp miles being nu^de ii> seeking a level), the

go INLAKD NAVIGATION*

canal reaches Manchester. The canal is carried over
public roads by means of arches ; and where not
high enough for a carriage to go under, the ground
is lowered with a gentle descent^ and ascends on the
other side. It is carried over the navigable river
Irwell, and nearly forty feet above it, so that large
vessels in full sail pass under the canal as under a
large lofty bridge, whilst the Duke's barges are
passing over them.

It may be proper here to describe the noble aqae«
diict which carries this canal over the river Irwell.
This stupendous canal was begun at a place called
Wdrsley Mill, as before observed, seven miles from
Manchester, where, at the foot of a large mountain
of coals^ the Duke has cut a bason capable of con*
taining many boats, and a great body of water, which
is a reservoir and head to his navigation. At Barton
bridge, three miles from the bason, begins this
aqueduct, which, for upwards of 200 yards, con-
veys the canal across the river and along a valley,
forty feet above the navigable river Irwell : there are
also stops at each end that may occasionally be drawn
up, and the whole intervening body of water let off,
which is easily done, only by drawing a plug and
discharging the water into the Irwell through a
wooden tube. There are many of these stops or
floodgates, so well constructed, that should any of the
banks give way, and thereby occasion a current, they
will rise by that motion, and prevent, as well the
loss of water, as the damage that would otherwise
happen by overflowing the country.

This bridge unites the Lancashire and Cheshire
parts of the Duke's navigation ; it is carried over the
0wadows on each side of the river Mersey ; and

lULAiril ITAVIOAttOII* 91

quite across Sale-Moofi at incredible laixmr and
expenccr Mr. Bnndley caused trenchei fim to be
made^ and then placed deal balks in an upright posi^-
tion, from thirty to thirty-six feet long, backing and
supporting them on the outside with other balkt
lengthways and in rows, and fastened together with
screws, driyiog in some thousand ^f oak piles of
different lengths^ between them ; and on the front
side he threw the clay and earth well tammed to^
gether to form his navigable canal. After finishing
in this manner about forty yards^ he proceeded agaia
as before, in a line where it was intended the canal
should continue.

An ingenious method was used to fill up the bed
of the canal to a proper level. Two long boats were
fixed together within two feet of each other ; be^*
tween and over them was erected a trough large
enough to contain eighteen tons of rubbish. The
bottom of this trough was composed of a Kne of doors
or flaps; %vhich, upon drawing ^ pin, burst open
and instantly dropped the burthen. The usefulness
of this contrivance is evident, for, from a near spot,
the trough was loaded, in a short time drawn to the
place wanted, and in an instant its contents deposited.

The bridge for the aqueduct oyer the Irwell is
built* all of stone of great stretch and thickness ;
every front stone has five square faces or bedd, well
jointed and cramped with iron run in with lead.
There are three arches over the river Irwell, which,
with the piers, are of the largest blocks of stone,
and crampt as before; the centre arch is sixty-*
three feet wide and thirty-eight feet above the water
in the Irwell, and will admit the largest barg&
that navigate that river to pass under with mast and

93 INI^iKH^NA'yiGATKW;!

sails rtantUngJ • (At Strctfor^,. three miles from^
hence, was thd caisson, forty yards long and thirtyr
two broad.

At Combrokc, three miles further, is a circular
wear to raise the water of the canal to a proper height ;
the surplus flows over the nave of a circle, in the
middle of the wear which is built of stone, into a
well, and by a subterraneous tunnel 13 conveyed to
its usual channel. There is also a machine to wash

the slack which is worked hy water,
, In order to feed that end of ihe navigation near
Manchester, Mr. Brindleyjaised, aiid as^ it wpre swal-
lowed up the river Mcdlock, by a large beautiful,
wear composed of six segmehtsbf a circle, buik of
squared stone and bedded in tercas, every stone cramp t
with iron and flushed in w^ith ijielted lead ; the whole
circumference is 360 yardsy with 'a circular nave of
stone in thb middle, • The, water, when more than
sufficient to supply the np.vigation, flows over the
nave, aiid down the well, as. at Combroke ; but in
order to keep the bed dry, during the time the work-
Aien. were building this wear, he turned off a great,
part of the water by a cut .through the rock, and
invented an* engine which he called a spoon, and
which. h^ wduked.' at. the end of a lever by a horse.
When this 3pQon ^ps -into the water, a kind of
flap dpor nciade of J^ather, is pressed open, and
admits the water till full, and. on being weighed up
the pressure of the water within closes the door^
and as the lever rises it runs off by a channel cut
within the spoon's handle.

From the wharf at this place the poor of Man-
chester fetch their coals in wheelbarrows, at three-.
pence halfpenny for a hundred yveight of seven score^-

^hidi is titt half the price 'they -» before paid for
that necessary, afticle. But Mr. Brindky, to remove
the inconvenience of carrying them up Castle Hill,
has cut a-latge tunnel through the centre of the
hill, into iwbich the barges are introduced; and by
a crana that is wbrked by a box water-wheel of thirty
feet diameter; and four feet four inches wide, they
are landed close to the town. This branch of the
canal to Manchester is * ten miles, and has been
executed on an average at idoo guineas per mile.

. At Langford-bridge the canal turns away to the
right, and crossing the river Mersey, passes near
Altringham, Dunham, Grapenhall, and Haulton,
into the tide- way of the Mersey at Runcorn Gap,
where the Duke's barges come ipto his canal from
Liverpool at low water. '

The ingenuity and contrivance displayed through
the,whole work was wonderful. The smiths' forges,
the carpenters' and masons' workshops were covered
.barges^ which floated on the canal, and followed the
work as it went on, by which means there was no
hindrance of business, and as the Duke had all the
materials in his own possession, timber, stone, and
lime for mortar, and coals from his own estate, aU
hard by, he has been at little expence besides labour.
It must be observed that the Duke has made the
refuse of one work serve for the construction- of
another; thus the . stone that was dug up to make
the bason for the boats, at the foot of the mountain,
as well as others taken from out of the rock to make
the tunnel, were hewn into the proper forms to build
bridges over rivers, brooks, and highways^ and the
piers and archies to support the aqueduct. The clay,
gravel, and earth taken up to preserve the level at
4

94 imlAnb katigation.

one place^ are carried down the canal to raise the
land in another^ or reserved to make bricks for other
uses.

Here ' grandeur, elegance, and econom|r are hap-
pily united* At first view it would seem that the
work was intended to excite astonishment. But on
a doser inspecrion there is to be found nothing un«
necessary, and the whole has been finished at an
expence no way adequate to the undertaking; in
short, the work is truly admirable, and will be a^
standing monument of the public spirit and economy
of the Duke of Bridgewater to the end of time.

Before the Duke began his canal, the price of water
carriage, by the old navigation, on the Mersey and
Irwell, from Liverpool to Manchester, was twelve
shillings per ton, and from Warrington to Manches*
ier ten shillings ; land carriage was forty shillings per
ton, and not less than 2000 tons were yearly carried
on an average. Coals were retailed to the poor at
Manchester at seven pence per hundred weight,
and often dearer. The Duke, by his navigation
from Liverpool to Manchester, carries for only six
shillings per ton, in a shorter time, and as certain^
delivery as by land carriage, consequently one half
is saved to the public of the old water carri^^, and
to .the poor for coals, and almost six parts in seven of
land carriage.

A short account of the , acts of parliament which
the Duke obtained for the purpose of making hil
canals will not, I think, be improper, adding a few
observations, as I proceed, by way of explanation.

In the years 1758 and 1759 the Dake of Bridge*
water obtained an act for enabling him to cut a
navigable canal from Worslcy to Salford, near Man-r

IKLAND VAVIGATIOV. Qt

/diester, and to cury th€ same to or near HoUin Ferry
in Lancashire.

Soon after the passing this act his Grace began hi«
works, and made a navigable canal from Worslejr
Mill to the hi^ivay leading frcxn Manchester to
Warrington : it being then discorered that the navi^
gation would be more beneficial both to himself and
the public^ if carried over the river Irwell near Barton-
bridge to Manchester, his Grace applied again to
parliament to vary the course of his caiud accordingly^
and to extend a side branch to Longford-bridge,
near Stretford, and obtained an act for that pupose*

The making a can4 over thfe river Jrwell^ and
filling up die hollow ground on the north side of
that river, appeared a most arduous undertakings and
by most persons who viewed it thought to be im-
practicable ; but his Grace being well supplied with
all materials wanted from his own estate, has com-'
pleted this as well as other difficult undertakings.

By the first act a rate or duty not exceeding half-
a-crown a ton was granted to the Duke as a recom-
pense for the making his navigation^ and the. second
act varies the course of the canal and extends it, but
makes no alteration with respect to tonnage.

The Duke, upon a further survey, and taking levels,
found it practicable to extend his canal from Long-
ford-bridge to Dunham, to fall into river Mersey, at
or near a place called the Hempstones, below Bank-
quay, so as to bring vessels into his canal at* the
lowest neap-tides ; and having obtained a third act
for that purpose, undertakes it at his own expence^
and without any additional tonnage.

If navigations are advantageous to a country,
that advantage must increase in proportion to their

<€

96 INLAND NAVICATIOir.

^* extent^ and the intercourse and connections with
^^ the parts with which they communicate ; and,
allowing this to be a fact, there certainly cannot be
a more interesting consideration, than the facili-
tating the conveyance of goods and merchandise
^* between the great trading towns of Manchester
*^ and Liverpool."

The above navigation is more than twenty-nine
miles in length ; it falls ninety-five feet, and was
finished in five years. The utility and profits of it
were soon perceived by a trading discerning people,
and a number of applications were immediately made
to patliament for different acts, as was expected, to
join the four great trading cities, London, Bristol,
Liverpool, and Hull, by an inland navigation, with
branches to diflFerent manufacturing towns, as I shall
particularly relate hereafter.

It would be useless in this abridged work to give
the three acts of parliament granted to the Duke, as
those who particularly want ro see them can always
purchase them. I shall therefore proceed, but must
beg excuse fpr a digression which I hope will be
both pleasing and useful to the reader.

I cannot give a truer character of the Duke of
Bridgewater, and that of his celebrated engineer, nor
set forward the great utility of their wonderful un-
dertaking in more lively colours, than by giving a
literal extract from a treatise on that subject, written
by ^ gentleman well known for his great abilities as
a statesman, as well as his great knowledge of the
mercantile world and landed interest*. And if I
should be deemed prolix, I hope to be excused, from

* Richard Whitworth, Esq. aftc^^^'ards Sir Richard, and dicj>
member for Stafford.

XKLAKO HATIGATtOir. 97

my desire as well to be useful as to please the reader,
for such a theme can scarcely ever be exhausted^
nor ought such a stupendous work^ to be treated
merely as a common occurrence or undertaking.
' This gentleman begins with — '* Nor can I enough
admire and commend that noble spirit and good
sense with which his Grace the Duke of Bridgewater
has so lately proved to the world that the advantages
of inland navigation are only to be obtained by car*
rying and cutting level canals of dead water from
one town to another, which admit not, nor are sub-
ject to, one half of the inconveniences which the
late method of making rivers navigable, by pound-
ing up the water by large and expensive locks, is of
necessity exposed to from the force of the stream
and floods. Nor can I help admiring the wonderful
and great natural genius, of Mr. James Brindley, who
planned the same, and perfected these canals^ sur**
mounting with his own genius and his Grace's money
and spirit, things that might have been thought
by 900 out of 1000 people almost insurmountable
difficulties. The breadth of these canals is about
eight yards wide, and four feet deep ; they are chiefly
made in a straight line over & flat country. His Grace's
first attempt was in order to carry. coals from his
works to supply Manchester and other towns in
Cheshire and Lancashire. 'She last act of parliament
enabled his Grace to proceed to Altringham, in
Cheshire, with which ui!idertaking they are now in
great forwardness (1766). They have now completecj
seventeen miles, at about 7 00 pounds per mile, ex-
clusive of the expenceof bridges, &c. The Duke
has built a very handsome bridge, or aqueduct, over
the Irwell, in order to convey his canal across that

•H

Q6 INLAND NAVIGATION.

river ; it is neat fifty feet high, and 500 yards long,
with three arches ; the main arch being sixty-three
feet wide. There is a road on each side of the canal
over the bridge for horses to draw the vessels along; .
and indeed it is no unpleasant sight to see one vessel
fifty feet higher than another, sailing over the bridge,
at the same time when another is sailing fifty feet
below it. There is one place where the canal goes
over the highway from Manchester to Eccleston.
But what is most ingenious, is the invention of flood-
gates that are under water and across the canal ; they
lie almost horizontally, a small matter inclining to
each other, and at a quarter of a mile distance, in
order that, if any part of it should break its banks,

' the draught of water rushing towards the breach may
draw up the two floodgates, by which means no
more v -^ter will he lost out of the canal than is be-
tween me two flood !xates ; and this, upon stopping
the breach, is restored by letting the floodgates down
again. In short, the principle upon which the whole
is formed is a fixed resolution to carry the level on

i through all difficulties, which plainly appears in that
great and amazing bank of earth which has been
carried across Stretford meadows, which is goo yards
long, seventeen feet high, and 1 1 2 feet in breadth
at bottom. Upon the top of this they bav^ carried
the canal eight yards broad, . four feet deep, and one
towing path on each side ten feet broad. After this
difliculty, I shall think nothing too much for money
to do, joined with a tolerable judgment and some
ingenuity. I cannot tell what these canals, &c. have
cost the Duke ; and I suppose the world will never
know, but by report; one may compute 100,00C1
pounds or upwards ; which is not only the greatest

INLAND NAVIGATION. ^ Q^

-tlnd^rtaking that ever was executed by any one sub-
ject in this nation ; but I may add of all the world.
I have now shewn^ I hope, that an inland navigation
biay be made by cutting canals through lands, much
easier and better than pouilding up the rapid current
of a river by locks."

Yet notwithstanding the Duke's undertaking was
accomplished to the satisfaction of every beholder,
and the difference in favour of canal navigation, con-*,
trasted to that of a river, was never more exemplified,
Dor appealed to more full or strikirtg advantage thaii
at Barton- bridge, in Lancashire, where one may secj
at the same time, seven or eight stout fellows labour-
ing like slaves, to drag a boat slowly up the river
Irweil, when one horse or mule, or two men at most
draw five or six of the Duke's barges linked toge-
ther, at a great rate, upon the canal, which is carried
over at this place by his magnificent aqueduct;
and notwithstanding the last-nientioned gentleman's
treatise was published in 1766, which convinced (as
he says) not only 9OO out of 1000, but 999 out of
1000, that canal navigation by still water was the best/
and experience tells us, the most useful ; yet, I say^
we find in 1768 an ingenious and sensible advocate
for river navigation ; even after Mr* Stneaton had
surveyed and delivered in his estimates to join the
Forth and Clyde, in Scotland, and whose objections .
I shall mention hereaftei*.

I. cannot take leave of the Duke of Bridgewater .
^'ith any propriety, without mentioning a few of
those leading plrticulars which proved the great
depth of his Grace's understanding and the well placed
confidence he reposed in Mr. Briridley, who will bd
admired by succeeding generations. For it must bd

lOa INLAND NAVIGATION^

observed^ the Duke had no facts performed, no dtm.
monstrations to revert to, nor any copy to follow to
set himself right ; but, actuated by his own discern--
ment, and guided by the genius of his faithful
Brindley, he consented to become the original, and
set an illustrious example for others to follow. Mr.
Brindley, I must beg leave to mention once more,
who was his Grace's principal engineer, and one of
those geniuses which nature sometimes rears by her
own force, and brings to maturity without the neces*
^ity of cultivation. His whole plan w^s admirable,
and so well concerted that he was never at loss ; fot
if any difficulty arose, he removed it with a facility
that appeared like inspiration, and that without the
least appearance of vanity or ostentation ; for being
without education, he too well knew his inferiority
in that point, and haying no sinister ends to grarify,
no contracted notions or ideas, nor jealousy of rivalJ,
he concealed not his methods of proceeding, nor
asked or solicited patents for the sole use of machines
which he invented and exposed to public view. Hi*
method of draining coal pits by a fire-engine, con-
structed at an expense of only 150 pounds, which
none knew how to make before for less than 50O
pounds, is a great improvement to the public, who
are indebted to him for the invention ; nor must I
omit a mill near the mouth of the subterraneous,
passage, and which, though an overshot mill, is so
contrived as to work three pair of grinding stones
for com, a boulting mill, and a machine for sifting
sand and making mortar, by a large stone laid hori-
zontally, and turned by a cog wheel underneath it ;
this stone, on which tbe mortar \s l^d, turns, in it«
eourse, two other stones that are placed upon it

I9LANl> NAVIGATION. lOt

ebllquely, and by their weight and friction ^ork the
mortar underneath, which is tempered and taken off
by a man employed for that purpose.

He also has invented portable cranes of uncom-
mon construction, to draw stones out of the quarries
by callipers. His water bellows at the mouth of
the cavern equally deserve notice. These consist of
only the body of a hollow tree, standing upright,
upon which a wooden bason is fixed in the form of
a funnel, which receives a current of water from a
higher grofund ; this water falls into the cyhnder, or
hollow tree, issues out of the bottom of it, and car-
ries a quantity of air, which is received into tin pipes
and forced into the inmost recesses of the coal-
pits, where it rarefies the body of thick air, which
would otherwise prevent the workmen from existing
on the spot where the coals are dug. Numerous
other machines and contrivances have been invented
. by Mr. Brindley, and all upon the most plain and
simple construction, all tending to save great expense
and trouble. And here permit me to insert some short
particulars of the life of this extraordinary mechanic
and father of English inland navigation, extracted
from the Biographia Britannica.

Mr. James Brindley, a man of uncommon
genius for mechanical inventions, and who particu-
larly excelled in planning and conducting inland
navigation, was born at Tunsted, in the parish of
Wormhill, and county of Derby, in the year 17 16.
His parents dissipated away the little freehold they
possessed, and young Brindley, was totally neglected
in education; and in his earliest part of life contri-
buted to their support. A^ seventeen years of age .
he bound himself apprentice to one Bennet^ a mill*

J 01 INLAND NAVIGATION.

wrightj near Macclesfield, iq Chfshire^ and soob b<Bfii,
came very expert in his business ; he quickly dis-
covered an attachment to the mechanic arts ia
general j in the early part of his apprenticeship he
was often left whole weeks together by his master,
without any previous instructions, who was frequently
astonished at the improvements he often introduced
into the mill-wright business, and th? millers, where-
ever he was employed, always chose hini in prefer-
jcnce to any other man, even his master.

I must liere mention, to his honour, a singular
instance of our young mechanic's active and earnest,
attention to the improvement of mill-work. His,
piaster having been employed to build an engine
paper mill, which was the first of the kind ever
attempted in those parts, went to see one of them at
work to copy aftef. But notwithstanding this, when-
he had begun to build the mill, and prepare. thc;
wheels, the people of the neighbourhood were in-»
fomied by a mill-wright, who travelled that road, that
Mr. Bennet was throwing his employers' money away,
and could not complete what he had undertaken.
Young Brindley hearing of this report, was resolved
to see the mill intended to be copied ; accordingly,
without mentioning his intentions, he set out on a
Saturday evening, after working all day, travelled
fifty miles on foot, took a view of the mill, and
returned back in time for his work on Monday morn-
ing, inforuied Mr. Bennet wherein he was deficient,
and cornpleted the engine to the satisfaction of the
proprietors. Besides this, he mad? considerable in^-
prpvements in the press-paper,

Mr. Brindley, when out pf his time, engaged in
the mijl business on his own account;, ^ind by ma^^

INLAND NAVIGATION. 103

useful inventions and contrivances advanced it to a
higher degree of perfection than it everbefore attained,;
By degrees his fame began to spread wide in the
country, and his genius was no longer confined to
mill-work only. In the year 1752 he erected a very
extraordinary water engine at Clifton, in Lancashire,
for the pupose of draining coal-mines, which before
were worked at an enormous expense. The water
for the use of this engine was brought out of the river
Irwell, by a subterraneous tunnel 6oo yards in length,
carried through a rock, and the wheel was fixed
thiny feet below the surface of the; ground. Mr.
Brindley's superior skill in mechanics being now well
known in that part of the kingdom, his reputation-
reached the metropolis, and he was employed by N.
Patterson, Esq. of London, and some other gentle-
inen, in 1755, to execute the larger wheels of a new
silk mill at Congleton^ in Cheshire. The execution
cf the smaller wheels, and of the more complex part
of the machinery was committed to another person;
who had the superintendency of the whole, but who'
was not however equal to the undertaking, and con-
fessed himself unable to complete it. The propri*-
etors where greatly alarmed, and called in the
assistance of Mr. Brindley, but still left the chief
management to their former engineer, who refused to
let him see the whole model, and aflfected to treat
him as a common mechanic. Mr. Brindley felt his
own superiority to the man who thus assumed con-»-
sequence, and would not submit to such unworthy
treatment, and he told the proprietors if they would
let him know what was the cflTect they would wish to
have produced, and would permit hina to perform
the business in his own way, he would engag^e to;

104 IMLANB NAVIGATIOir*

finish the mill to their satisfaction. This assurance,
joined to the knowledge they had of his ability and
integrity, induced them- to intrust the completion of
the mill solely to his care ; and he accomplished that
very curious and very complex piece of machinery
in a manner far superior to their expectation, by con-
structions of many new and useful improvements,
particularly one for winding the silk upon the bob-
bins equally, and not in wreaths ; and another for
stopping, in an instant, not only, the whole of this
extensive system throughout its various apartments,
but any part of it individually. He invented like-
wise machines for making all the tooth and pinion
wheels of different engines. These wheels had
hitherto been made or cut by hand with great labour.
But by means of Mr. Brindley's machines as much
work could be performed in one day as before re^
quired fourteen. The potteries in Staffordshire were,
also much indebted to him for additions in their
mills, for grinding flint stones with more facility. In
the year 1 756, Mr.Brindley undertook to erect a steam
engine near Newcastle-under-Iine, upon a new plan ;
the boiler of it was made with brick and stone in-
stead of iron, and the water was heated by jSre flues
of a peculiar construction, by which contrivances
the consumption of fuel, necessary for the working a
steam engine, was reduced one half. He introduced
likewise into this engine cylinders of wood, made in
the manner of coopers' ware, instead of iron ones,
the former being not only cheaper, but more easily
managed in the shafts ; he substituted wood, also,
for iron in the chains which worked at the end of
the beam. His inventive genius di^layed itself in
many other useful contrivancest

mULBB H ATIGATIOir. 105

Mn BriniUey^s attentioD to this part of mechanics
ivas soon called off to an object of the highest na*
tional importance, namely, the projecting and exe-
cuting of inland navigation, from whence the greatest
advantages arise to trade and commerce. In this
period of our great mechanic's life we shall see the
powers given him by the God of nature displayed in
the production of events, which, in any age less
pregnant with admirable works of ingenuity than the
present, would have constituted a national one. We
shall see him triumphing over all suggestions of envy^
or prejudice, though aided by the weight of esta-
blished customs,, and giving full scope to the operas
tions of a strong and comprehensive mind, which
was equal to the most arduous undertakings. This
he did under the protection of a noble Duke, who
hftcl the discernment to single him out, and the stea-
diness and generosity to support him, against the
(pinions of those who treated Mr. Brindley's plans
as chimeras, and laughed at his patron as an idle
pojector.

His Grace the Duke of Bridgewater, as has been
observed before, hath at Worslcy, seven miles
from Manchester, a large estate that is rich in
mines of coals, which hitherto h,ad lain useless, be-
cause the expense of land carriage was too great to
find a market for consumption. The Duke, wishing
to work these mines, perceived the necessity of a
canal from Worsley to Manchester; upon which
occasibn Mr. Brindley was consulted. Having sur-
veyed the ground, he declared the scheme to be
practicable, and an act for that purpose was obtained ;
the success of which is before described, and was the
fust of the kind ever attempted in England. The

lOO INLAfiP NAVIGATION.

principle laid down at the conunencemeiit of this
business re6ect$ as much honour on the noble un-^
dertaker as it does upon his engineer. It was re^
solved that the canal should be perfect in its kind,
and that, in order lo preserve the level of the water,
it should be free from the usual construction of locks.
But in accomplishing this end many difficulties were
deemed insurmountable. It was necessary that the
canal should be carried over rivers, and many large
and deep valleys, where it was evident that such
stupendous mounds of earth must be raised, as would
scarcely, it was thought by numbers, be completed
by the labours of ^ges ; and above all, it was not
known from what source so large a supply of water
could be drawn, even on this improved plan,, as would
supply the navigation. But Mr. Brindley, with a
strength of mind peculiar to himself, and being pos-
sessed of the confidence of his great patron^ *^nV
trived such admirable machines, and took inch'/
methods to facilitate the progress of the work^ that
the world soon began to wonder bow it could bet
thought so difficult.

When the canal was completed as far as Barton,
where the Iiwell is navigable for large vessels, Mr* .
Brindley proposed to carry it over that river by an
^ueduct thirty-nine feet above the surface of the
water in the river. This, however, being considered
as a wild and extravagant project, he desired, in order .
to justify his conduct towards his noble employer,
that the opinion of another engineer might be taken,
believing that he could easily convince an intelligent
person of the practicability of the design, A gentle**
man of eminence was accordingly called, who being

cpnducted to the pJ^'ce wh^re it was iatcnded that •.

INSiAKII KAVIGATIOIf. 107

the aqueduct should be made, ridiculed the attempt^
and when the height and dimensions were commu-
nicated to him, he exclaimed — ^^ I have often heard
of castles in the air, but never was shewn before
where any of them were to be erected." This un-
favourable verdict did not deter the Duke from fol-
lowing the opinion of his own engineer. The aque-
duct was immediately begun, and it was carried on
with such rapidity and success as astonished all those
who but a little before thought it impossible. This
work commenced in September 1760, and the first
boat sailed over it on the 1 7 th of July 1761. The
particulars of the completing and finishing of this
navigation to Runcotn Gap, into the river Mersey,
I have before described.

The success of the Duke's navigation encouraged
a nttmber of gentlemen and manufacturers in Staf-
(pidlfaltti to cherish the idea of a canal navigation
tktomgh that country, and Mr. Brindley was engaged
to survey it from the Trent to the Mersey; and upon
his reporring that it was practicable to construct a
canal from one river to the other, and thereby unite
the ports of Liverpool and Hull, in 1766 this canal
was begun by him, and called the grand trunk navi-
gation, and was conducted with great spirit and suc-
cess as long as he lived, and was finished by his
brother-in-law, Mr. Henshall, who finished it in
May 1777j to the general satisfaction of the propri-
etors, and joyfulness of the whole country. This
canal is ninety-three tj^iles in length, and besides a*
vast number of bridges over it, has seventy-six locks
and five tunnels. The mo?t remarkable of the tun-
nels is the subterraneous passage of Harecastle,
^88p yards in lengthy and more than seventy yards

108 IXLAKd NAVIGATION.

below the surface of the earth. The scheitae of this
inland navigation had employed the thoughts of the
ingenious part of the kingdom for twenty years or
inore> and ^{urveys had been made, but Harecastle ,
Hill, through which the tunnel is constructed, could
neither be avoided nor overcome by any expedient
that the ablest engineers could contrive. It was Mr.
Brindley alone that surmounted this difficulty, and
others arising from the variety of measures, strata, and
quicksands, as no one but himself would attempt.

Soon after the navigation from the Trent to the
Mersey was undertaken, Mr. Brindley designed and
ej^ecuted a canal from the grand trunk at Haywood,
to the river Severn, near Bewdley, whereby the port »
of Bristol was united to the ports of Liverpool and
Hull. This canal is forty-six'^miles in length, and
was completed in 1772. Mr. Brindley*s next under-* '
taking was the survey and execution of a c^n&l-from
Birmingham to unite with the Staffordshire a^VV'Qf^
cestershirc canal near Wolverhampton. Ttys"^ navi-
gation was finished in about three years, aad^^is
twenty-six miles in length. The canal from Droit-
wich to the river Severn for the conveyance of salt
and coals, was executed also by Mr. Brindley. He
likewise planned the Coventry navigation, and it was
a short time under his direction, but a dispute arising
about the mode of execution, h^ resigned bis ofHce,
Avhich the proprietors of that navigation have since
had cause to lament. Some little time before his
death Mr. Brindley began tbe Oxfordshire canal,
which unites with the ■ Coventry canal, and that
with the grand trunk, will form an inland navi-
gation from Liverpool and Hull to London. —
Although they Were soon deprived of their able

XKliAHB VAVXaATIOK. lOQ

^pgine^r, the wprk was carried oa and finished
with success*

The canal from Chesterfield to the Trent at Stock-
with was the last public undertaking in which Mr.
Bnndley was engaged ; he Surveyed and planned the
whole, and executed sonie miles of the navigation,
which was finished by Mr. Henshall, in 1777. There
were few works of this nature projected in the king-
doni, in which be was not consulted. He was em*
ployed in particular by the city of London, to survey
a course for a canal from Sunning, near Reading, in
Berkshire, by Monkey Island, to near Richmond ;
but when application was made to parlian^nt for
leave to efifect their design, the bill met with such
a violent opposition firom the land owners that it was
defeated. Those fine gentlemen would not suffer
their villas to be disturbed by noisy boatmen, or tlieir
lawns 5o be cut through for the accommodation of
"^00 j&^d Commerce, though it was from that only
that most of those villas and lawns had existence.
* "^It. Brindley had for some time the Calder navi-
gation under his direction, but he declined a farther
inspection of it, on account of a difference of opinion
among the commissioners. In the year 1766 he
kid out a canal from the river Calder at Cooper^s
Bridge to Huddersfield, in Yorkshire, which has since
been carried into execution. In 1768 he revised the
plan for the inland navigation from Leeds to Liver-
pool. He was also appointed the engineer for con^
ducring the work, bM the multiplicity of his other
engagements obliged him to decUne the employment.
In the same year he planned a canal from Stockton^
by Darlington, to Winston, in the bishopric of Dur-
ham, Three plans of the like kind were formed by

110 IKLANZ> NAVIGATION*.

him in 176(). One from Leeds to Selby ; ahothcf
from the Bristol channel, near Uphill, in Somerset*
shire, to Glastonbury, Taunton, Wellington, Tiver-
ton, and Exeter ; and a third from Langport, in the
county of Somerset, by the way of Ilminster, Chard,
and Axminster to the south channel at Exmouth^ iil
the county of Devon. In 1770 he surveyed the
country for a canal from Andover by the way of
Stockbridgc and Kumsey to Redbridge, near
Southampton ; and in 1771 from Salisbury, by For-
dingbridge and Ringwood, to Christchurch. He
performed, also, in 177% the survey for a navigation^
proposed to be carried on, from Preston to Lancaster,
and from thence to Kendal, in Westmorland. He
surveyed, likewise, and planned out a canal to join
the Duke of Bridgewater's at Runcoim Gap, from
Liverpool. If this scheme had been executed, it was
Mr. Brindley's intention to have constructed the
work by an aqueduct over the river Mersey, at. a
place where the tide flows fourteen feet in height*
He also surveyed the county of Chester, for a canal
from the grand trunk to the city of Chester. The
plan for joining the Forth and the Clyde, was revised
by him, and he proposed some considerable altera-
tions, particularly with regard to the deepening the
Clyde, which have been attended to by the managers.
He was consulted upon several improvements .to the
draining the low lands in Lincolnshire and the isle of
Ely. A canal was also laid out by him for uniting
that of Chesterfield, by the way of Derby, with the
grand trunk at Swarkstone. To the corporation of
Liverpool he gave a plan for cleansing their dock*
from mud, which has been carried into execution
with the desired effect ; and he pointed out also t\^

INLAND NAVIGATION. 1 1 1

method, which has been attended with equal success,
of building walls against the sea without mortar.
The boast of our great mechanic's inventions and
contrivances, which I shall mention, is his improve-
^ment of the machine for drawing water out of mines,
by a losing and a gaining bucket. This he also em-
ployed afterwards to advantage in raising up coals
from the mines.

When any extraordinary difficulty occurred to Mr.
Brindley in the execution of his works, having little
or no assistance from books or the labours of other
men, his resources lay within himself; in order,
tlicrefore, to be quiet and uninterrupted whilst he
was in search of expedients, he generally retired to
his bed, and he has been known to lie there one,
two, or three days, till he had attained the object in
view. He would then get up and execute his design
without drawing or model. Indeed, it never was his
ciistpm.to make either, unless to satisfy his employers.
His jTQeraory was so remarkable, that he has often
declared that he coujd remember, and execute, all
the parts of the most complex machines, provided
he had sufficient time to settle in his mind the several
departments and their relations to each other. His
method of calculating the powers of any machine
invented by him, was peculiar to himself. He
worked the question some time in his head, and
then put down the result in figures. After this,
taking it up again in that stage, he worked it farther,
in his mind, for a cartain time, and set down the
result as before. In the same way he still proceeded,
making use of figures only at stated periods of the
question, yet the ultimate result was generally true,
though the road he travelled in search of.it was un^

11% INLAK0 KAriGATlOBr.

known to all but himself, and it was not in hia power
to have shewn it to another.

The attention which waS paid by Mr. Brindley to
objects of peculiar magnitude, did not permit him
the common diversions of hfe. He never seemed
in his element if he was not planning or executing
some great work, or conversing with his friends upoa
subjects of importance. He was once prevailed on»
when in London, to see a play, having never seca
one before ; it had a powerful effect upon him, and
he complained for several days after that his ideas
were disturbed, and rendered him unfit for business^
He declared then tliat he would not go to see an-
other play on any account. It might, perhaps, have
contributed to the longer duration of so valuable a
life to the farther benefit of the public, if he could
occ^onally have relaxed the tone of his mind. His
not being able to do so might arise fVom his always
being.^ployed in great designs. The only fault
that he was observed to fall into was suffering him-
self to be prevailed on to be engaged in more con<»
cerns than could be attended to by any one man,
however eminent his abilities. It is apprehended
that by this means Mr. Brindley shortened his days,
and abridged his usefulness. There is the utmost
reason to believe that his intense application in gene-
ral, to the important undertakings he had in hand,
brought on a hectic fever, which continued upon
him some years with little or no intermission, and at
length terminated his life ; hi?, died at Turnhurstj in
Staffordshire, on the 27th of September 177^> in the
fifty- sixth y^ar of his age, and was buried at New Cha*
pel in the same county. The vast works Mr. Brindley
was engaged in at the time of his death lie left to

INLAND NAVIGATION* 1 13

be completed by his brother-in-law, Mr. Henshall^
for whom he had a peculiar regard, and of wherse
integrity and abilities in the conducting these works
he had the highest opinion.

Thus was the world deprived, at a comparatively
early period, of this great genius, " of mother wit,
and wise without the schools," who very early in
life, gave great indications of uncommon talents and
extensive views in the application of mechanical
principle, and who, by a happy concurrence of cir-
cumstances, the chief of which was t;he patronage of
the Duke of Bridgewater, was favouied with an
opportunity of unfolding and displaying his wonder-
ful powers in the execution of works new to this
country, and such as will extend his fame, and
endear his memory to future times. The public
could only recognise the merit of this extraordinary
manih the stupendous undertakings which he per-
feq^d and exhibited to general view. But those
who had the advantage of conversing with him, and
of knowing him well in private character, respected
him still more for the uniform and unshaken inte-
grity of his conduct, for his steady attachment to
the interest of the community, for the vast compass
of his understanding, which seemed to haire a natu-
ral affinity to all great objects, and likewise for many
noble and beneficent designs, constantly generating
in 'his mind, and which the multiplicity of his en-
gagements, and the shortness of his life, prevented
him from bringing tc^lh^turity.

Mr. Brindley was the greatest enthusiast in favour
of artificial navigations that ever existed. Having
spoken upon various circumstances of rivers before a
cofumittee of the House of Cpmmons, in whicji hq

114 IKLAND NAVIGATIOftr. *

Seemed to treat all sorts of rivers witb great con"-
. tempt, a member asked him for what purpose he
apprehended rivers were created ? Mr. Brindley, con-
sidering within himself a moment^ replied> " To
feed navigable canals/'

Employment in so many considerable works had
made him think there was nothing impossible to him.
He had for late years a favourite scheme of joinicg
the two islands by a floating road and canal from
Port Patrick to Donaghadee, which he was confident
he could execute in such a manner as to withstand
the most violent attacks of the waves.

He bad been so lowly educated that he had learned
neither to read nor write, and afterwards went no far-
ther than signing his name, yet he could cast up in-
tricate accounts in his head without difficulty or
error.

Louis XV. of France, upon hearing what he had
perftQlrned, had an inclination to see him, and to
have him view the canal of Languedoc ; but he said
. he would make no journies to other countries, un-
less it were to be employed in surpassing what was
already done in them.

More panegyric on this great man is useless, nor
shall I describe the Duke of Bridgewater's coal mine,
I shall therefore proceed in short descriptions of ca-
nals as they follow :

Navigation from Liverpool to Hull.

While the Duke of Bri(^ijwater's curious inland
navigation was carrying on, there were several views
and surveys taken to discover if possible a route for an
itti^fjd navigarion from Liverpool to Hull. I cannot
«cc this widcrtakiij^ in a dearer point of view, than

JliLAN0 KrATIGAtlOITi lift

i('rom extracts froor the resolutions passed at the meet-
iogs held on the subject, and from the difTerent acts
of parUament obtained, as also from a celebrated per-
formance in which inland navigation is judiciously
treated of. I shall also add some rei;narks and ob-
aervations of my oWn, made on the different spots,
having been employed in some of these works, and
Jiave attended others through curiosity ; for there is
a rational as well as ridiculous curiosity, and it
is eitlier usefixl or injurious, according to the disposi-
tion of the person in whom it prevails. In weak .
minds it is the source of levity and its ill conse<-
quences, but in noble and scientific minds it is the
parent of industry, and the guide to every useful
species of knowledge.

In beginning this subject it will be necessary tb
revert back as far as the year 1753, when the cor-
poration of Liverpool, ever attentive to its trade aild
commerce, employed two gentlemen (Mr. Taylor of
Manchester, and Mr. Eyes of Liverpool) to survey
the country, and take levels, &c. with a view to join
the Trent to the Weaver or Mersey, and to open a
communication between those great sea ports, Liver-
pool and Hull, by which the traffic of the east and
west seas might be carried on by an inland naviga^
tion not exceeding 150 miles, which now make a
circuit of above .600 miles, and exposed to adverse
and stormy winds. This inland navigation, it Was
proposed, should pass through Nottinghamshire,
Derbyshire, Staffordshire, and Cheshire, and after
an accurate survey it was found to be practicable.
.This survey was chiefly supported by the late Mr.
Hardman, an active and able friend to the commetv.

1 2

liO INLAND NATIGXTIOlf^

cial interests of this nation^ and one of the represen*
tatives of that borough.

The public are also indebted to Earl Gower^ now
Marquis of Stafford, and the late Lord Anson, for
another survey of the intended course of this canal^
jnade by Mr. Brindley in 1758, and afterwards re-
viewed by Mr. Smeaton, F. R. S. and Mr. Brindley
jointly; and these surveyors concurred in opinion^
that no tract of land m the kingdom was naturally
better adapted for the purpose of inland navigation,
and that none stood in more need of it, or was so
convenient for a union of the east and west seas.

In the year 1760 ^public meeting was held at
Sandon in Staffordshire, at which Lord Go^er, Lord
Anson, and a great-number of the gentlemen land
owners and manufacturers attended ; but difficulties
arising, further surveys were advised, and 1000 pounds
subscribed, for the extending the surveys from tide-
way ti^, tide-way ; another meeting was held the same
year, and Mr. Smeaton and Mr. Brindley attended
with their surveys according to their last orders. The
result of this meeting I shall mention hereafter, and
give the reasons why the second plan was approved
and executed in preference to the first.

In the year 1765, two plans were offered to the
public for a navigable cut or canal, to form a com-
inunication between those great sea-ports,. Bristol,
Liyerpool and Hull, by a junction of the rivers
Severn, Trent, and Weaver or Mersey; and as a
great many gentlemen in the counties through which
these rivers pass were divided in their opinion^, 8ome
giving preference to one plan and some to the other^
I beg leave to describe both in as concise a manner

IKLANB VA.VlGATIOJf. 117

as poBsible. As the extent of country through which
they were to pass was great, so also would be the
many advantages as well to agriculture as to trade,
which I shall shew, and hope not to be thought pro-
lix on a subject on which the interests of so many
persons, and so large a portion of commerce was
concerned ; and as one of these plans is executed,
by exhibiting both, the public will be enabled to
judge which seemed to be most beneficial to the
country. And, first, I shall describe the plan and
route of the canal (refused) as laid down by the
author of the Advantages of Inland Navigation, and
which is marked on the map with dotted lines. This
writer was a gentleman of such property and local
knowledge of the counties, and the trade and manu-*
factures carried on in them (himself living in the
center of them), that I am greatly surprised his plan
was not approved, excepting in two particulars^
which might have been easily altered, but as they
stood I think very objectionable. These are, first,
his not going into the Severn lower down, near
Bewdley, than where his intenrion was, at Tern-bridge
near Shrewsbury, to avoid the shallows that lie in the
Severn between Bewdley and Shrewsbury, and must
greatly retard the navigation between those two
towns. The other is his not going into the Mersey
at Runcorn Gap, or into the Duke of Bridgewater's
canal at Preston. Brook, which falls into the Mersey
at Runcorn Gap, rather than by his plan into the
river Weaver at Winifotd-bridge, on account of the
number of locks from thence to the tide-way to go to
Liverpool. It is also to be observed, that if it had
joined the Duke*s canal at Preston Brook, the goods
and merchandise brought by the canal from Hull

118 INLAND KAVIGATIOl^.

and Bristol by the Severn and Trent, might have
been conveyed to Manchester, without going doMm
those locks 75 feet into the river Weaver, and up as.
many more int6 the Duke's canal ; beside? going
round a point of land, and being liable to the ob-
strucrions of neap-tides and adverse windj, by which
barges may be retarded several days, and which I
shall have occasion more particularly to explain,
after I have given the route of both canals. But, be-
fore I proceed, it will be proper to obsen^e that the
route of the canal down the river Trent to Wilsdeu
Ferry, is in order to avoid the shallows between
Burton and Wilsden, rather than fall into the Trent
at Burton, which would save a cut of fifteen miles. If
the obstacle occasioned by the shallows was ob-
served there, how it should have escaped the notice
of a person of such discernment as the gentleman
who planned the firs.t route, not to go into the
Severn, below Bewdley, is to me inconceivable*
. To begin then with the first plan for a communi-
cation between Bristol and Hull. It was proposed
that the said canal should pass from or nefir a place
called Tern-bridge, on the river Severn, in the county
of Salop, and from thence a little higher up than
the course of the river Wroxeter, cross the Upping-
ton road, by Wansford and Allscot, and cross the
j^ad leading on the right to Wellington, thence by
Crudgingtpn (where the Tern comes from Drayton)
thence up by the Wildmoors, by or near Chetwin
Park, on the side of Pilson Hill, thence across the
low grounds near Flashbrpoke Hall, making its first
entrance into StaflTordshire at Whitley Ford, and
proceeding thence by the river Whit at Batchacre
Grange, ^nd by the side of HiH Park, along Tun^n

INLAND NAVIGATION. i IQ

tal Moor into the valley below Offley Park mills,
where the highest summit of the land is, thence it
was to- cross the brook that runs from Cockmeer in
Eccleshall parish, and proceed by Pershall low
grounds, Eccleshall and Byanna, down the valley
to Hilcot and Chebney to the river Sow that comes
from Standon, where, about a mile and a quarter
above Bridglbrd, the proposed navigation from Li-
verpool by the Weaver was to unite with the Bris-
tol. It .was then to proceed along the meadows on
the right hand side the river to Stafford, from thence
down the river Sow across the Penk, and by Bas-
wich to Haywood Park ; from thence by the river
Trent, crossing the same near Wolselcy-bridge and
behind Bishton House, over the river by Rudgeley,
across the brook by Lee Hall, Armitage and Brom-
ley, and across the river at Whichnor ; thence by
Branston and Seaney Park, leaving the town of Bur-
ton on the right by MonkVbridge, across tile river
Dove to Eggington, being its first entrance into
Derbyshire, and thence by Willington and Twyford
on the right by Cliff Hill, Black Pool ind Weston,
and thence into the river Trent at Mr. Drake's ware-
house at Wilden, where the river Trent is navigable
without any inconvenience from locks, though there
are some few shallows by Newark, Nottingham and
Gainsborough, to the great sea-port Hull«

Liverpool Branch to the Bristol Branch.

Having planned oig» the route of the canal from
Bristol to Hull, I have now to describe the course of
the Liverpool navigation from the Mersey to the
place where it unites with the Bristol canal at Bridg-
ford near Stafford. The river Weaver falls into the

120 INLAND NAVjaATIOKt

Mersey at Frodsham, and is now by act of parlia-
ment made navigable by the tncans of locks as far as
Northwich, and further up to Winsford, for the con-^
veniency of conveying the produce of the salt works
to LiverpooL I would therefore propose, says my
author, that a navigable canal should be made from
Winsford on the river Weaver, by Weaver Bank,
Minshull, and Barton Cross, near Nantwich, from
thence along the valley to Wybunbury, Chieckley
and Rynehill-Hall, where it leaves Cheshire and en-
ters Staffordshire ; from thence through Madcly Park,
being the highest summit of land, and from thence
fiear Whitmore, Stapleford-bridge, Standon, Wal-
ford, Millmeese, Coldmeese, Shallowfbrd and Bridg-
ford, where it will unite with the Bristol canal, and
proceed to Wilden, and so as by the route before to
Hull.

As I speak from surveys that have been taken, I
inake itot the least doubt but the above scheme is
both practicable and easy to be executed at no very
large expense, considering the great national utility
it will be of even to every individual. I will therefore
proceed to shew how the same itiay be executed,
after what manner, and, in regard to the expense,
will calculate and come to as near a certainty as the
nature of these sorts of undertakings will admit of.

I would first propose, says my author, that the
land to be purchased should be eighteen yards broad,
and the canal in breadth nine yards at top and six
yards at bottom in water, and* one towing path on
each side four yards and a half; the depth of the
water should be five feet, .on account of the different
kinds of boats that are likely to navigate it ; but as
there ought to bcsome restriction with respect to the

make of tbi boats ; I should think th«y Ought to be
fifty feet long, ekven feet broad^ and built after the
form of those made at Bridgenorth on the Sev^rn^
nor ought they draw more than three feet and a half
when loaded. This kind of boat would better suit
the navigation in negard to their passing one another^
and the preservation of the banks, and may be so
built as to carry thirty tons, and cost about fifty
pouftds, with a mast, mainsail, tow-line, &c. There
might be a covered place in the steerage for a man
and a boy to sleep in, as they frequently want such a
convenience when they have any valuable goods on
board ; it then would be very imprudent for them to
sleep on shore lest they might be stolen. There
might also be a forecastle six or eight feet long for
the same purpose. These vessels will carry goods
from Bristol to Liverpool or Hull, without the trou-
ble and expense of reshipping, as those boats now
used by the Duke of Bridgewater on his c;|nals in
Lancashire will not bear the navigating in the tide-*
way beyond the Hempstones, and on that account
are both troublesome and expensive, being seventy
feet long and six feet broad. They also require double
the quantity of water and labour in carrying the same
quantity of goods through a lock, that the vessels I
hcfe propose do. The sorts of boats most con-
vcnicnt cannot be properly ascertained till the canals
are finished.

As this navigation must be open to all persons, it
will therefore be soalC^'hat difficult to confrne every
one to have their boats built in such a certain man-
ner as to prevent their damaging in their passage any
part of the banks of the canals, and to procure the
observance of all such rules and orders as may be

122 INLAND NAVIGATION^

made for the good of the same ; upon that account
I have allowed as a great breadth for the top of the
canals as possible to obviate the above inconveni-
enceSi which are avoided in private navigation,
where all the vessels that can be used upon it are the
property of one person, and the whole together, both
men and boats^ immediately under his own direc-
tion.

The expense of these canals will come to about
900 pounds per mile, including the purchase of
lands, erecting locks, building bridges, and making
the towing paths on each side ; and surely this is not
to be considered as a large sum when it is well known
that many turnpike roads in England have cost KX)0
pounds per mile only tp repiair them. Then let us
imagine thie vast difference there will be in the car-
riage of goods, &c. between one and the other.' We
will say, for example, for a mile on any such turnpike
road 1000 ton of goods may be carried in a year, and
probably the passage of goods upon one mile of
these canals, may not be less than 100,000 ton,
therefore why can we think the expense great, ac-
cording to this proportion of repairing turnpike
roads, when all goods may be conveyed from east to
west, much cheaper and safer by these navigable
canals, and the price of carriage will always con*
tinue the same ; whereas land carriage differs accord*
ing to the badness of the roads, or the number of
carriers, and is often subject to great inconveniences,
not to mention that all sorts of brittle goods are subject
to be broke by loading and unloading into different
waggons ? It must therefore be allowed that water
carriage is far preferable to land carriage, especially

IITLAND NAVIOATIOK. 123

^n these canals where boats would meet no difficul*
ties, but always arrive at the appointed time.

The distances from place to place as follows : From
Tern- bridge, where the canal begins, opposite Batch-
acre Grange, twenty miles and nine perches ; from
thence to the highest point of land in the course of
the canal below Offley-Park, four miles and five
perches; from thence to the junction of the river
Sow, where the Liverpool canal joins, six miles ;
thencetoBndgfordone mile and quarter; which makes
thirty-one miles one quarter and one perch. Ta
Stafford three miles three perches ; from thence to
Wolseley-bridge, where the river Trent is crossed
by the canal, six miles one quarter ; from thence by
Bishton to Wilsden Ferry, thirty-two miles ; which
makes forty-two miles. The distances on the Liver-
pool part of the canal are as follow : From the meadow
above Bridgford in Staffordshire, where it joins the
Bristol canal, to Madely Park, being the highest
summit of land in the course of the canal, near
which place the canal rans both ways, N. W. and
S. E. is ten miles and a half ; from thence to Bar-
ton Cross thirteen miles ; from thence to Winsford-
bridge in Cheshire nine miles one quarter and six
perches, which makes thirty-two miles three quar-
ters and six perches,

The fall westward, between Tern-bridge and the
highest summit of land in the course of the canal,
where the water runs both ways, which is in the v^aU
ley below Offlcy Park*^ is 1 36 feet nine inches, from
thence to Bridgford eastward it is fifty- four feet
eight inches ; from Bridgford to Stafford Mill Pool^
j^nd to the crossing the Trent near Wolseley-bridgo

n4 INLAND NAVIGATION.

and to-Wilsdcn-ferry, is l6o feet; between Bridg-.
ford in the Liverpool canal, and the summit in Made-
ky Fark, the fall is 100 feet three inches, and fmm
dience to the Weaver, by a west course to Winsford,
k is 284 feet, one inch.

It is not material here to give the length, distances,
and falls of water ; I shall pass them over, and pro-
ceed to more important observations. The reader
will here observe, that the high summit of land be-
tween OfRey Park and Cockmere brook, a distance
cf a mile and a ha]f, is an elevation of twenty-tive
feet, into which I propose digging and removing the
earth eighteen yards wide, the breadth of the canal,
towing paths, and drains, which I reduce to a level
that breadth, and a fall decreasing each way one mile
and half. In the whole there must be removed
198,015 cubic yards of earth, which, at three-pence
per cubic yard labour would, cost £2^75. 3. J j.
wbicb.reduces the level, and makes the fall to Tern- .
bridge westward 136 feet nine inches, and to Bridge
ford eastward fifty feet eight inches, by which means
four locks will be saved.

The kuthor next subjoins a copy of the proposals
for executing this great design, and considers in what
manner to proceed in order to obtain an act of par-
liament for promoting its being effected and exe-
cuted.

Proj-josals (to be printed in all the public papers)
for meetings to be held at Bristol, Liverpool and
Hull, and at all the intermedial towns, to invite the
masters of the great furnaces and forges at Sam-
brook, Keinton, Tibberton, Upton-under-Hayman,
Coalbrook Dale» Ketley, Horsey, Wythey ford, -More-
ton, Welley, Pitchford, Sutton, Longnor, and all

rVTLAND NAVIGATION. 145

the large various manufactories lying upon the ia-
tended navigation or Severn, to attend and concur
with the land-owners in a petition to parliament.
Then follows the form of the petition, and also a me-
moiandum of the agreement or consent of the land-
owners through whose lands the canal is to pass, and
the form of a subscription paper for raising the sum
necessary for an application to parliament. He next
gives the proposals for raising the fund to defray
the expenses of making and finishing the said canals,
which he estimates at 1 1 6,000 pounds, which sum
it is intended shall be divided into 580 shares of 20O
pounds each, and that no person shall have above
twenty shares, and that the money shall be advanced
by each subscriber in equal proportions as wanted,
and bear lawful interest, from the paying such sums
till the navigation shall be completed, and from the
time of the completion thereof, to receive the pro-
portion of the profits arising thereby, according to
their shares, which shall be made transferable by a
clause in the act.

The following are the resolutions agreed to.
At a very numerous meeting of noblemen, gen-
tlemen, land-owners, traders and manufacturers, held
at the Star Inn, at Stafford, tenth of August, 17 66,
it was unanimously agreed, that application should
be made to parliament this session^ for an act to
make a navigable canal from the river Severn at
Tern-bridge in the county of Salop, and the river
Trent at Wilsdcn in the county of Derby, and also
from the river Weaver at Winsford-bridge, in the
county of Chester, to communicate with tire above
at Bridgford on the river Sow, in the county of
Stafford :
That it will be most conyenient for the execution

126 INLAND NAVIGATION.

of this utidertaking, if the making and completing;
the said navigation, which has been estimated at
1 16,000 pounds, were to be distributed into 580
shares, and raised by subscription, and that no per-^
son shall have more than 20 shares ; the money to be
advanced by each subscriber, in equal proportions,
as the same shall be wanted^ and the shares made
transferable by a form prescribed by the act :

That a subscription be immediately opened to
raise a fund to support the necessary expenses of
procuring the act ; that the money so subscribed,
after obtaining the act, be repaid to such subscriber
in part of payment of their shares :

That a subscription be also opened for the money
which shall be wanted for making and completing
the said navigation; that twenty days be allowed
to complete the subscription; that the subscribers

names may be entered with , of Bristol, Gloii-

cester, &c. &c. and all the towns, here named^ in
Staffordshire, Derbyshire,, and Cheshire, with liver-
pool and Hull, where books will be opened to receive
subscriptions for that purpose, and an account is de-
sired to be transmitted at the end of twenty days - to

f of Stafford (being about the center) of the

iiubscriptions at each place, and if not then complete,
to be left open until it is ; the first subscribers to
have the benefit, if the subscriptions exceed the
sum wanted, of voting, according to their number
of shares, in an annual choice of a proper number
of directors, to be limited in the act, who shall have
the management and inspection of the work ; and
that commissioners shall be named in the act to
determine all controversies and disputes that may
arise : that provision b^ inserted in the act for

INLAND NAVIGATION. 127

mating full satisfaction to the land owners and their
tenants^ for all lands to be taken in for the use of the
navigation, and for all damages, both present and
future, which they may sustain thereby, and for
giring all proper conveniences, to such land owners
and their tenants : that it be proposed for the consi-
deration of parliament, that a proper toll shall be
taken as tonnage, to be fixed by the act at about
is, 6d. per ton for each and every ten miles; that
each vessel shall pass on the navigation, and also
that the subscribers be paid five per cent, for their
money in the respective sums advanced, from the
time of their paying in the same till the whole com*
munication between the three ports shall be com-
pleted, and firom that time to receive their propor*
tion of profits, according to their shares, and that *
the subscribers be permitted to vote by proxy :

That no toll be taken for stone, gravel, or other
materials for repairing the roads, nor for dung, soil,
or lime, or other manure used only to improve land :

That these resolutions be printed in the public
papers three weeks succcessively.

The interest of the country and the public good are
afterwards so judiciously discussed in this excellent
treatise, and the manner as well as matter of the
natural produce and nianu&ctures so particularly and
minutely treated, that I should leave this part lame
and defective, were I to omit the author's observa-
tion on this subject. Besides, were I to describe the
produce and manufactures on the route of one canal
and not on the other, it would be impossible for an
impartial judgment to be formed ; therefore I think
it most conducive to the interest and pleasure of the
reader, to finish one account before I begin another :

128 INLAKJ> ICAVIGATIOSr.

for this reason I shall resume the subject in the
author's own words^ pr I should do iojustice to all
parties^ Who says —

" I have now gone through the forms and pro-
ceedings, except the levels and estimates necessary
for obtaining an act of parliament for the carr3ring
into execution the foregoing pl$n of the navigation
between the three great sea ports^ Bristol, Liverpool,
and Hull. I shall now proceed to add some obser^
vations on the inland trade, and the increase of the
export tradc^ of this country.

" The vast importance that trade is of to this nation
is too frequently and too strongly instanced, even in
the disturbances of any manufacture whatever, which
seldom fails to draw,, not only the attention of the
people, but also the serious consideration of the
legislature to interpose and alleviate their calamities
and distresses. The late uneasiness of the weavers
in London, was a striking instance that the least in-
dulgence to admit foreign goods into this kingdont^
(when our manufacturers in Spitalfields were able to
furnish as good, if net better), and preferring them
to our own was a clog upon our trade ; and the dis-
tress of a few had like to have embsurassed the rest
of the nation to find redress for their complaints.
Nor can I get out of my head the present atop to
all sorts of trade (1766) in these parts, and the dread-
fall situation that thousands of fiunilies are in from
the refusal the noble Ameticans have lately made of
having any trade or communication with the mother
state, entirely occasioned by an impmdent and ill-
considered measure taken by the late administration^
by advice of the financier, Mr. 6. 6. in arbitrarily
in>pofiiDg the stamp act i^ioo the Amencans^ ia the

ille^liry of wbkb, reason, argum^nn, nnd humanity
have (^(useflto be; parries concernecl. ' '

** I have said that t6 trade we owe our opulencf ^
and for that conv^hicncy by for r the greater number
of the nation have fixed thcmselvea in towns, and'
have stripped the country of every laborious cottager,
latdy Bwarming with a cluster of healthy children,'
by the landlords laying their farms into large takes,
thetcby entirely ruining those useful body of men,
the smalt fafmers, most of whom, rather than only
hedge and 4itch where they had lived in comfort,
have now emigrated to America ; therefore the ^cater
numbem have got together, that couli not fcmigtate,
and trafiicking with eaoh other, it is natural, even oil
that account, to have a greater regard to thisir pros-
perity ; and as they subsist by trade alone, it is fitting
the nadon'should do all they can to protect, increase,
and encourage them t in short, it is by trade alone we
live, and by society we are made happy, they- being
bnocLgbt about by an easy commfunication and con-*
nection ond with another, throwing the whole
nation, as it -were, upon a kind of equality, giving
to cvepy man liberty to improve. Among the an-
cients, commerce did not appear unworthy the ap-
plication of persons of the first rank.

" Solomon, we are told^ frequently joined hi?
merchants* fleets with those of the king of Tyre, for
their voyage to Ophir ; arid by this means rendered
himself, though in a little kingdom, the richest king
of his time, in the universe.- How greatly did trade
flourish under the Romans ! what vast companies of
merchants in the different cities are mentioned by
bistonans ! and we always find that those nations
that abounded most in shipping and navigation were

130 INLAND NAVteATIOK.

the first leaders in trade^ and spread themselves in at)
the ports of the Levant and Egypt. The Greekt
and Romans thus acqmrtd their lustre and power ;
and upon the ruins of them is our modern commerce
founded, trading to the saijie places. It is morally-
impossible for men to flourish without the assistance
of each other, as well a» zr /easy con^^munication from
place to place. What makes the Dutch not only vie
with all the world in trade, but really eclipse them t
What but their vast conveniences of inland navigation^
by which the produce of all the internal parts of the
provinces becomes an external commodity, and is
carried to the farthes^t part» of the globe, returning
tp the industrious labourer (who wa» the original
proprietor of what wo\ild have been of little value
at his own home) triplefold, and the returns nude
in things the most useful to his family ? It was the
easiness and practicability of making canals that first
led the Dutch to trade and commerce, in which it
must be allowed they exceed all other nations, and
entirely owing to their canals. The trade of Great
Britain may claim some place under the shield of
commerce, but it seems astonishing to a cool con*
siderate mind, that Britons should never heretofore
think of inland navigation, nor endeavour to effect
an easy and mutual intercourse through the whole
island^ and let each subject share the gifts of nature
in a more equal degree, by which the exports would
be doubly increased^ and there would be a greater
demand for the imports.

'^ The advantages, from these canals, to this
nation would be very great, as every person must
allow that the stamma of our trade is the iatemal
produce of the kingdom; and the nearer each

lltlAND liAVl tfA WC*i 1 3 1

fiAdnufablu^er is to his rtarket, tlte greater price hVs
gdods- Will t?akc ; fot instance, if a person manufac-
tures a piece of cloth, (such as is usually sent abroad
to America or elsewhere), in the county of StafFordj
where he lives, forty miles from the merchant*s ship
that is to carry it abroad, will he not be obliged to
sell it, upon account of the heavy charge of land
carriage, for a much less price than if he could con-»
vey it at an easy rate to a sea- pott, by a canal, and
there sell it at the same price that a factor would ?
Let us only coiisider that the factor biiys up the goods
or manufactures of fifty poor people, and conveya
them to a merchant, at a large profit, which falls
into the hands of the factor alone, and enriches only
one ; whereas, were each manufacturer to have the
conveniency of conveying his own goods directly to
the merchant^ all the profits monopolized by the
factof would be divided between the fifty poor per-
sons, and enrich that number instead of one. The
more hands any goods or merchandise go through,
the dearer they are to the consumer, as every person
through whose shop they go must have a profit ; but
in this case the factor monopolizes the whole profits
of fifty poor manufacturers.

** In case of invasion or rebellion, by these canals
government would be able to transport their heaviest
cannon to any part of the country in a short time ; as
also regiments with th^ir baggage might be con-
veyed in a much safer way than by long, tedious,
h^fassing marches, through bad tpads, that are
almost impassable, and oftentimes faf round to the
point they want to come to ; besides the saving in
artillery horses, and the expense of baggage waggons
to government, which usually amounts to nearly as

K,2r

132 mtAKn HAvmATlON*

much as the pay of one third part of the regimctK
for the time. Every person must remember the
great difficulties encountered in conveying the cannon
and other miTitaFy stores, in the rebellion in 1745^
even only eighty miles from the metropofis^ so ex-'
cessively had thea ^erle the high roads of the tves-*
^ern party; aftd rndeed to speak the truth, were
government to have occasion now to convey the same
military stores^ fhcrie would be but little more expe-
dition, unless they could be sent by navigable canals*
^ It has been a common objection against navi-
gable canals in this kingdom, that numbers of people
are supported by land carriage, and that navigable
canals will be their ruin ; and if has often been said^
to remedy that inconvenience, that those people may
take to other trades, and turn farmers or navigators^
and instead of driving waggons learn to steer and
navigate a boat, which, in time of war, may turn
out to the advantage of the navy, or merchants* ser-
vice, upon both o( which our safety depends. But I,
more supple to the inclinations of my fellow-country-*
men, am unwilling to unbend the crooked finger,
or straighten the distorted joint, inured to tally with
the stroke of ijts accustomed trade, and at his old
age deprive him of the art of his employment, and
leave him in his second childhood to begin the
world anew ; and as the land carriage is chiefly car-
ried on from t*he trading towns and their neighbour^
hood, I must advan^ a very uncommon aherative,
which would free the carrier from any fear of losing
his employment, or selling off his stock, viz. That
uo naain trunk of a navigable canal ought reasonably
to be carried nearer than within four mile3 of any
great trading or noanafacturing towa^ considering tfaur

IKLAKD KA5ri«ATI0Sr. 133

{3irescnt state and situatioii of afiikirs, atid the propria
fsty of blending the landed wHh the cominercial
interests ; which distance from the canal is sufficient
to maintain the same, number of canienSi and almdat
as many horses, as usual, to convey the goods down
to the canal, in oixier to go to the sea ports for ex*
portation. When any person forms a project for tbt
general advantage of the nation, he should also cpn<>
sider that of every indiddaal, and be carefo) that
one is not burthened, in order to unburthen another.
I have, therefore, made this uncommon proposal to
favour the landed as well as the commercial interests ;
for I think it certain, considering both interests to^
gethcr, that it is not for the benefit of every indivi-
dual, in a trading city, to have the navigable canal
tome close to their town, but that the same should
. be at a proper distance, suppose about four miles, sq
that each trade may have some employ, those who
carry the goods, as well as those who manufacture
them. There is no doubt but the person who manu*
factares the goods might afford to export then)
cheaper by having the canal come close to him ; but
then we mint consider all parties when we talk about
trade, and not let the carrier starve while the traders
and manufacturers ride in thehr coaches. If a manufac-
turer can have a certain conveniency of trading his
goods by water carriage, within four tnties. .of his own
home, snrdy that k soiEciant, and profit enough^
considering that odier people muft live as well as
himself, and a pioportxm of praSt to each trade
should 'be 4ht bkssiag .and ieading pdlii^^y pf this:
nation. . i : :

^' It has often been objected that sn inland aa*
ligation . dflsttoys 'that noble bfatdd :af idrw^t

134 ' INLAND NAVIGATION.

hbtscs, since tbere will be little or no occasion for
them ; and upon that account the farmers woi^ld not
be able to sell their oats : and it has as often been
•pleaded in excuse that the farmer might then turn
•his oat ground into wheat ground, and instead of so
thuch land being employed to furnish food for 1000
horses, the same land, when turned into tillage fit to
sow wheat upon, might produce sufficient bread
corn to feed 2000 poor families. I have not leisure
here to discuss each point so fully as I could wish ;
therefore as I have explained the commercial and
landed interests in a medium way, I will rest this
upon the merit of the former clause,

" There certainly is nothing which requires the
attention of the people of this nation more than the
progress of husbandry ; and in attending to that, we
cannot have too great a regard to the interest of the
farmer, and to ease him as much as we can in the
burthens and hardships he undergoes, and which are
such as even to reduce him to support himself and
family onr skimmed milk, whilst he saves the cream
for the rest of his fellow- creatures, and disperses it
abroad in the nation to the nourishment of thousands.
What great advantages will he not receive from these
canals, by being able to sell his corn, and carry it to
any market at any time of the yeat;. and as. the
plenty of cori^. in this .kingdom^ and the easy con-
veyance of it from one. place to another, is what will
make a greater equality tl^cough the whole kingdom?.
and when it is cheap at home: he will be' able, to get
a hotter price for it at andther market; aiid if it should
be dear, any quantity might soon be brought from
andther country to 'supply^ their; wants, -by which
ttii^M'^ iM)uId:^slsifay8 Jmp;atia ntodiira price iha

lKf.AKI> NATIQATIOV. 135

vbolc communication through, or in any pkc^e within
twenty miles of the canal. It would then be an un-
common thing to hear of a riot on account of the
deamess of corn. (HadMnWhitworth been now alive
he must have recanted the above). And I cannot help
observing th^t if corn and provisions are chea'p, the
manufacturers might be able to work cheaper, and ir»
50 doing might always keep up a good export to
foreign markets, in being able to undersell other na-
tions, and at all times to have a market, on account
of the merchandise being sold cheaper at foreign
ports in preference to other nations.

^^ The exportation of corn is at this time (1766)
one main branch of the trade of the nation, and
ought to be countenanced, I mean in a proper de«-
gree, and bear a proportion in the exports accord-
ing to the price or scarcity of it. Whilst corn on an
average is not more than five shillings and six-pence
per bushel, let the exports be uninterrupted ; but
when it advances higher than six shillings, it is
time to stop it in a proportionate degree. I hope
when I say it is a branch of our trade, that the
sum of 7,500,000 pounds which from the year
1746 to 1750 inclusive was returned to this kingdom
for 5,000,000 of quarters of grain exported (as ap-
pears from an account laid before the House of
Commons in 1751) will be a proof of its importance.
Surely this well- deserves some attention as a main
branch of our trade, and such a one that under our
present happy government will always increase in-
stead of diminishing, as the basis of that trade is
the yearly product of our lands, and the materials
always within ourselves, and whilst agriculture is
daily improving, and the quantity of tilled larjd

(from the tndosmg of camoDp^6) i& idaily Uvcceiisingi
this sceals our natural tr^de^ and fiU other:S appear
AS if grafted here from a forci^ti soilj and some*
times are too apt to canker at th^ rppt. How greit
will be the incr^se of the txportation of <orn from
these inlapd canals^ wheil every farmer in the ad^^-
jacent counties can almost as it w^e ahip off his coi:fl
from hid own barn, and receive all the profits hitn^
self that the factor used to have ftom the merchant J
I will now eodeavq^ to shew how much he will be
a gainer by this convenience. Let us suppose that a
farmer in Staffordshire (fmm whence immense quan*-
titics of corn are carried to Woor or Sandbach by
land carriage^ in order to go to Manchester for home
consumption, and to Liverpool for exportation) carries
for instance one ton of corn, which he hath agree d
with his factor to deliver at Woor pr Sandbach in
Cheshire ; the charges of his teaoi, himself and
man, going fourteen miles, will not be so little as
twenty shillings, as he must be out two days, when
he may send the same quantity of corn in a boat of
his own for eighteen pence per ton for each tan miles,
so that it would not cost him, charges included, more
than five shillings ; but if he should pay freight,, it
might be about eighteen pence more for each ten
miles, than if he had a boat of his o^^n ; but I will go
farther, and say thai he might deliver it at Liverpool
himself at the same tonnage and freight^ which would
amount to a very trifling stma more, at which place
he would receive all the profits that the factor used
to have by such conveyance ; his horses may then be
employed in improving bis land by carrying manure
to it, and he might inclose at)d till more lands
which are now waste grounds and conunons. How

JlKLAilD 94rVrz<»ATBE)K. 137

ffe^Aj would agriculture' be imjproTed^ and ' tbe in-
.oease aod piioduce of ov land fulfil the pcoverb of
returnifig'ten'-fbld, and the shepherd made happy by
the increftse of his sheep ! I cannot omit mention-
ing, before I conchide the enumeration of diese
general advantages^ die immense convenience that the
merchants at the three ports will receive from being
able to send their merchandise by this cand from
Bdstbl to Hull» which is in fact joining the east and
west seas together. A merchant that trades from
Bristol to the N. £• paits of the globe, will send his
goods by this canal to be ^ip(ped at Hull ; and also
a merchant at Hull trading to the S. W. will send
them by the same canal to be shipped at Bristol^ by
which means they will avoid that most tedious and
hazardous voyage of two months mund the Land'is
End, and also the expense attending: that long
voyage^ and will find themselves gainers.

^^ The great advantage that this kingdom will derive
from a less number of horses being kept for drafr is
prodigious^ as the same lands Jthat kept 2O3OOO
horses, will now, perhaps, keep 30,000 fat bxien ; by
which means butchers' meat will be always cheap to
the labouring poor, arid the quantity of fat from sb
many beasts will of course make candles cheap, and
to diany hides will iower the price of leather, and so
of shoes, and att * things made of leather. Or the
same quantity of land will keep 30,000 cows, the
milk of which will make both butter and cheesfc
cheaper, all which anicles are \'ery considerable and
of material moment in the price of our tiiatnufac^i^
tures, as they, in a great meatuje, Work their trade
to rise and fall in price according to the cheapness of
materials and the necessaries of di&« '-

J38 INLAND NAV1€?ATIY>N.

*^ Inland navigation will encourage old m^^nufac''*
tQrers to work with fresh vigour, when they can
obtain their materials cheap, and will give opportu-
nity to set up new ones^ as the materials may be con-
Teyed any where.

." There are many large mines with valuable con-
tents, . that, for want of carriage and conveyance, are
useless, such as stone, iron ore, marble, and quarries
of various sorts, that would then be opened and
worked, and be productive of' the greatest advan-
tajge to the proprietor, as well as to the kingdom at
large, in which they might be purchased at an easy
rate*

*^ The coasting trade seems to claim mention of
the great advantages that will accrue to it by these
navigable canals, as all or most of the goods that
have usually gone by land carriage from London to
these countries will now be sent by shipping to the
ports, and from thence be dispersed to their destina-
tion by the canals ; for the more you open a channel
the more water is drawn from the head, and works its
way farther on.

*^ They will certainly cause more shipping to be
employed on the coasts, and more sailors to navigate
them. I must here naake one observation, that old
men and worii out sailors may be employed on these
canals ; and those whose constitutions will not suffer
thf m to go a long sea voyage, may do very well to
•navigate these vessels on the canal. Every boy in
each village through which the canals pass will have
a desire .to become a sailor, and will be trained up
ih his «arly youth.to band a rope, and soon become
Berviceable on board a ship, by which mean$ these
canals will become toe of the most natural nurseries

for seamen fof his Majesty's fleets, and the protection
of this island ; as also of shipwrights upon any enier-
gency ; both which are certainly great advantages to
^ny state.

" These canals will also be of great advantage to
the landed estates, as more persons will now com6
find settle themselves on njany commons adjacent to
the navigation, for the benefit and conveniency erf
trade, and thereby improve and inclose those barren
lands; and the present inclosed lands will receive
jgreat benefit, either by draining some that want it,
or flooding others, which is reckoned a great im-
provement to meadow lands.

** I think the result of every plan and scheme for
the public service should vdtimately terminate in
giving assistance to the distresses of the poor, and
relieving their wants, by letting them have the
ijecjBssaries of life at a cheap rate. This I term cha-
rity to our brother. This is the stamina of our trade,
and a principal security for our present and future
affluence.

<f It is as impossible that the immense advantages
that will accrue to this nation, in a variety of instances,
from inUnd navigation, should be enumerated by
Qne pen, as it is to number the sands on the shore ;
I shall therefore proceed to point out some local
advantages to the manufacturers only, bordering oi)
these canals.

" I will begin with the country about Tern-bridge,
in the county of Salop, as the canal begins there
from Severn. The amazing number of large iron
works within four or five miles of that place, and all
the way to Batchacre Grange, are astonishing. There
are five large furnaces, viz, Coalbrook Dale, Madely

140 nCLANB KA.ri6ATlO:7.

Wood, lightmore, Horseliay, and Ketley, wliich
aire computed to turn at least eighty thousand poundi
tt year e«rh ; and nine large forges, which may be
computed to turn twelve thousand pounds a year
<each^ vits. Keinton^Tlberton^ tJpton-under-Haghmon,
Withifetd) Moretjoo, I^chford, Sutton, Longnor,
and Sambfodk. There are several other iron, coal,
and lime work«, wnA large manufactories in the neighs
bourbood of the rivm Tern and Severn, that m\\
bt^der or lie within four miles of this intended navi-
gation. *niere are also on the Cheshire side, lying
on or ittafr the river Sow, two more furnaces, vie.
Madeley and Doddington, wliich may be computed
as above ; and four forges, vie. Lea, Winnington,
Norton, and Warmingbam, to be computed as above,
besides ixiairf other iron and coal works, and other
manufiuetories.

As the great iron trade here carried on is but little
known in other countries, I will proceed to shew
what weight of carriage, and number of tons of
materials used in that branch alone comes in and
goes out. As X collected my information from a
master of one of the iron wotks, I hope it will ap-
picar that I have under-done rather than over-done
it. I shaM, thefefore, next Aew the number of tons
eoffiing in and going out weekly and yearly.
Six fiirnaces, computed to iufn yearly

each -g80,00O

Two ditto omitted.

Twelve large iron forges, ootfiputjed to turn

yearly each 12,000

Two ditto omitted. ' •

^6^,000

JiT . I in ■ ^ I I »

** The weddy ccmsumptiDii of the Ais. fiimacss and
twelve foiled before mentioiied, i% an a medmiii,
Totts of ofe brought m, and pig vran .... . ;^-. 46jr
Ditto of koft manufactttred going out weekly v . 35(1

Ditto of ph coal used weekly ^. . . i 03?

Ditto of charcoal used weekly. v . . , . sg

<< The above totals^ mokiptied by* 32^ ntake the
yearly con&amption as follows:
Tons yearly brought into the abotne fumaees

and forges 241^284

Ditto yearly gcMg out manu&ctured . . • » ^ • '13^104
Ditto yearly consumption of pit coals. ..... i%S7i

Ditto yearly consumption of charcoal ; ; . . ; .3,0^19

N. B. There are many moi«e iron works fhwrlic
within distance. Ton».

Total amount yearly of tons. 52,7 80

Reckoning on an average at 1 5s.

per to&, the present price of

land carriage costs yearly ^s^9^&8f5

Deduct from the above for home

carriage of pit coal for Salop

furnaces 9,36o 7,020

•mm ■*>! I H I ■

43,420 ^S%,565

*^ So that the sum 32,5651. is the present price of
land carriage yearly to these iron works alone : out
of which we will allow 5s. per ton for lajid and
water carriage at is. fid. per ton for each ten milej
on the canal, and the remaining 2s. per ton for land
carriage, any where within six miles of the canal ; so
that it will stand at 10s. per ton, which amounts to
21,710l. for the money saved yearly to these iroD
works alone by this canal, suppoaing the whole of
the same be conveyed upon it.

I4£ Xl^LAND NAVIGATIOir*

W!c must observe, that the foregoing calculations

are. made: within a circle of 20 mil^s. They frequently

send.irpn to Burton by Ivesey Bank, which might be

$ent by these canals ; and also to Chester, and many

other places at a great distance. By lowering this

heavy charge of carriage, the iron masters will be

able to afibrd to mai^ufacture their iron mucii cheaper,

and consequently be able to undersell any foreign

markets^ or any iron that shall be imported ; and iii

a few years will prevent the use of any of it, by

being able to sell at a lower price than foreign can

be sold at. As long as iron takes a price, it will

always be in^ported ; and whatever iron comes to a

$ea^port, whilst our home-made iron is at a high

price, will always work itself into the heart of the

kingdom, let the conveyance be as difficult as it

will ; but when once your materials come cheaper to

you to maftufacture your iron with, you will be

able to sell cheaper, and by that means only will

prevent the importation of foreign iron.

" Cumberland ore alone is a very important article,
which will entirely be conveyed along this canal from
IVodsham in Cheshire : a very small furnace will use
1 100 tons of it in a year, which comes now entirely
by land carriage from Winsford- bridge, in Cheshire,
at 6s. per ton for a small distance, which may be
conveyed by these canals to all or most of the fur-
naces and forges. If Liverpool and Hull should ever
have a separate navigation, they will send foreign
iron into those countries, which these iron works,
1 now have been speaking of, used to supply. I
have therefore proposed this plan for the junction of
the three ports at the same time, otherwise the iron
masters about the Severn in Shropshire would have

lib opportuiiity of such easy conveyance, and conse-
quently lose the market, icnd must of necessity de-
crease their saSe, and greatly injure their works. I
have dwelt thus long upon the iron trade^ to shew
that no branch of manufacture can reap moi^ imtne-
diate benefit of these canals^ or more sensibly ic^'
the want of them, when other parts of the kingdom
have them. •'

^* The next article of tVade is the immense number
of great coal works that lie bordering on this canal
in Shropshire, Staffbrdsbire^ and Cheshire. I will
ikst mention those at Ketley in Shropshire; from
which many thousand' tons of coal lire ccmvtjiA
3^arly to Shrewsbury by, land carriage, which might
be sent by water. There are very great lime w^rks
near this canal, belonging to Brook Forrester, Esq*
at Steeraway, The tons of lime got yearly is about
20^000, used for manure of land and building;
] 0,000 tons of which might be carried by water.
About Newport, at Linsel, are very large coal and
lime works, belonging to the Marquis of Stafford and
otherS) the produce of .which is very great, being
computed yearly at 35,000 tons of coals, and 35^000
tons of lime ; 10,000 tons of each of which might be
conveyed to the north, east, and west parts of these
countries, and might almost be delivered into the
boats at the works, as a canal might easily be made
at the bottom of the hill by Cheshul Grange, to unite
with this canal a Ktde below ; the whole of the land
to be cut through is his Lordship's property ; and if
his ix)rdship did not choose to do it, the proprietors
would gladly undertake it« The towns of Eccleshall
and Stafford, and the countries between, might b^
supplied at a cheap rate, and firing come reasonable

144 tnhAffJt ffAriOAVlcm.

to poof peoplew Th^r^ ^r^ liko^rise lovcral Urge coal^
work& ftbgut Madeley Pad:, viz*. L^ysit,. Scotthaj^
apd otb«r3, bdonging to Sir Nigel Greslcy, Mr.
Crew, Mr. Mfyncll, and Mr. Pool. There is also
liiBestcMij^. at Bishops Ofiley, but which, for want of
coals tQ bura it with, is made no use of- There arc
aipo other large coal works in Cheshire, that go by vari-
ous names, whkh supply the furnaces there, and also
the towns of Nantwichi Betley, and all the neigh-
bpurhopd. Nantwich alone may be. computed to
use 1 (3,0Q0 tons, and it^ neighbourhood to Winsford
about I5.jp00ton9 more,, all which might be. con-
veyed aWpg this canal from Madeley pits in Stafford-
sliire; aijd instead of casting 10s. p6r ton land car-
r>age^ would cost only Is, 6d, per ton, besides about
that suEfn ,m^Jt for freight ; so that the prkx of coals
alone will b^ decreased to the labouring poor, and to
the consumer, 7 s. out of 10s. who wcnild also be
able to fetch them at all seasons of the year.

" The next article that will prove the useftdncss
of th^se canals is the lime, which is used for the
manure of land, and is a most excellent and quick
improvement. It has hitherto been used only where
the carriage ci>mes easy ; it will therefore now be-
come gener^J, and many lands that have never yet
been improved by it, will quickly assume, another
appearance, a^d demonstrate the great utility of in-
land navigation.

^^ I cannot omit mentioning the great jquantities of
cheese that are yearly cairied to Bridgenorth * fair
from most parts of Cheshire and Staffordshire ; k is
impossible to make an exact calculation^ hxA I will
suppose lOQO tons at least, which are now carried by
waggons for 20 or 30 .miles> being obliged to stay.
6

IStJjn^ KATIGATIOK. 143

*ut with their team, at a great expense, three or four
days, at Mt lesa then 30^. with two tons of cheese
only ; which might be Conveyed on the canal 20
miles, freight and tonnage for Qs. only, and from
Tern-btidge to Bridgcnorth for 3^. more ; so that
in this article one guinea is saved in 30s. besides hav-
ing the horses at work four days at home. Surely,
from this convenience, the farmer can afford his
cheese cheaper, and the poor have provisions at a
more tnoderate price. *

** The next manufacture that seems to claim our
attention, with respect to diminishing the heavy
burdens of land carriage, is the potteries of Burslem
and Newcastle, great quantities of which are sent
weekly from thence to Bridgenorth, through Eccle-
shall and Newport. There are constantly two, and
sometimes three ws^gons which go every week to
Bridgenorth, and carry about eight tons of ware, to
be conveyed to Bristol by water; and their back
lading usually consists of all sorts of groceries, foreign
iron, and white clay for Burslem, to supply the in-
land towns of Newcastle, Stafford, Eccleshall, and
Newport, and others. Sometimes they bring hops
and cyder from Worcester. The back carriage of
the iron and clay, being heavy goods, may be com-
puted at ten tons per week. But as there is a great
traffic carried on in the cyder arid hops by waggons
hired on purpose to fetch them, I will therefore com-
pute that 2000 tons of hops and cyder come yearly
into these countries, and far beyond them into
Cheshire ; the whole of which might be conveyed
by this canal, and Js. ' per ton saved out of every
105. now paid for land carriage.

*\ liarge quantities pf pottery ware from Borslera
are now carried on horsey' b^ks ia crates ta Bewdky
and Bridgenorthi which might bfe entirely carried hj
the canal^ suppose we compute it at 100 ton», at
2j. lOJ. per ton^ from Burslem to Bewdley^ wheocf
they are sent to Bristol for exportation.

^^ I mast not forget the mimber of pack horsea,
about 190, that go weekly with woollen cloth, and
various other kinds of merchandise, for exportation^
from Manchester, through Stafford to Bewdley and
Bridgenorth, computed yearly at 812 tons of carriage,
which might be conveyed fiill half the way by
water, from Manchester to Northwich by land car-
riage, and from Northwich by water to Bewdley
or Bridgenorth, which would be nearly IQO mUea
by water ; by which easy carriage the mieFchants
at Bristol would be able to export their merchandise
much cheaper, and undersell any other merchants
at a foreign market: the manufacturer would also
have his share of a ' profitable voyage, and by a
quick return from the merchant would enliven his
poor workmen, with future hopes of employment,
by a ready market,

" There is a great trade carried on at Shrewsbury
in coarse cloths and flannels, which come out of
Wales, and supply a great part of Shropshire and
Staffordshire bordering on the canal ; by which they
may be conveyed to Liverpool to be exported, and
may be computed yearly at 1000 tons, passing 6o
miles on it*

<' I cannot omit the great salt trade carried on at

Northwich. The salt, which can now only go to

Liverpool by water, when this canal is made, may

be conveyed at least one half to Bristol ; and that

ttm^alt N^ntwich^ j^^luch is noi^ earned Qnfaoi;sc«
/back, to ?erye three .pr foiir inl^ counties, ami is
ccit lass than 400 *pns, may tt^en be conveyed df)
miles on the oanal in tl«c»e ,i».ftntws-

^' Tiheigreat jijade tl^rtfChopter, enjoys from Ire-
land in cloths and linen^ ian.4 J^jlwjch occasions ,^o
igoeat a fair to fee -held tfcere tsvicc ,a year, must,
without doiibtr(wheftever Chejtier .shall have a canal
4:o unite with this ;it Nantwich, which n^^y be easily
effected) be conveyed from the .fairs ,at <Jhester along
)tbis Acanal to Northwicjh, J^antwich, Eccleshall,
Stafford, Newport, Drayton, Salop, Bridgenprth,
land various other towns, and the intennediate qqun-
tries. The tons of cloth and linen only may be
truly computed at 2000, forty miles upon ^n
.average, water canri^e, on this canal.

" The quantity of. Cumberland red. ore, that is
ufied at Doddinglon furnace in Cheshire is about
i 1 00 tons a year. It ia brought from Frodsham, over
Delamerc Forest, in carts, at a great expense.
dould . the great . fucnaces at Ketley in Sb ropshire be
; supplied .with this lOre by water, the si^ furnaces
there (which now buy: Cumberland pig iron) would
use upwards of 12,000 tons to $erve the-ifprges, and
would be brought 6o.miles at Jeast along the canaU

^^ The great quantities . of {ine hard brick for
iloors, and blue tiles, that are sent. for toMadeley
Park from various pasts of Staffordshire and Shrop-
shire, and are conveyed at great expense by land
carriage, may be computed at 200 tons of bricks and
tiles, thatjvould ibe carried to. all parts bordering oti
.the canal. Let us suppose aJ^rmer goes ten miles
for.aJoad.of'.tiL3s.to Madcky, hia. waggon and .two
men willbfe out two days, and wiU cost. him 20s.r^

148 INLAND KAVIOATION.

the badness of the roads will hardly ever admit of
his carrying a ton ; by the canal he might convcfy
the same for 3 s. freight and tonnage, and for half
that sum should he have a boat of his own.

" I cannot omit mentioning once more the vast
quantities of com, and all sorts of grain from the
counties of Stafford, Salop, and Chester, that will
be sent to all parts on this canal, to supply as well as
foreign markets; and from these three counties,
bordering on or within six miles of the canal we may
suppose not less than 15,000 tons will be carried
yearly 20 miles on the canal, reckoning 1 1. 6 J.
tonnage, and 1^. 6d. more for going 20 miles on
the navigation, will amount to a considerable in-
come,

" I will only mention one more considerable arti-
cle which will always be conveyed along this canal.
I mean timber for houses, and also for ship-building,
as within six miles of this canal, in Staifordshire and
Shropshire, they may vie with all the rest of the
kingdom (taking the same compass) for the largeness
of the oak trees fit for keels and building large ships.
These nuy be conveyed at least 6o miles on this
cahal. Prom the centre we will suppose l0,O00 tons
and upwards of this timber will pass 30 miles on this
navigation, which, at 1 f . 6 d. per ton, will amount
to 2353/. which will be an income that will accme
between Bristol and Liverpool only, but much more

exvc, that all the trade, manu-
ndise I have hitherto menrioned,
en Liverpool and Bristol only.
itice of any trade from Stafford
Vilden Feirj, which is 43 miles,

IKULND HAVIGATIOir. 14$

It is a great country for timber^ but there is no very
. great manufacture any where within six miles of the
cana]^ except I mention Burton ale, which is sent to
all parts^ carrying on a large trade in that commodity
alone. A great quantity of malt would be carried
thirty or forty miles on the canal, which would
greatly increase the income. In case that Birming^
ham and \yolverhampton, Litchfield and Tamworth^
should ever have cuts made to communicate with
this canal,'* (which since the pubUcation of the
pamphlet from whence these extracts are made have
been accomplished) ^' the chief of the tonnag;e of
this part would be from various manufactured goods
which they ship at HuQ to send abroad. Birming-
ham might have a canal made to go by Litchfield,
and fall in widi this at King's Bromley Common^
which would be 24 miles. Wolverhampton might
have a cut, either down by the Penk river, to &U
into the junction of the Penk and Sow, or by
Hedgeford Pool, down that valley, to fall in by
Rudgeley forge ; which of the two is most feasible
I cannot determine, the first being 1 6 miles, and
the falls great; the latter 18 miles, and the falls
much less.

" I must here take notice how easy the canal be-
tween Tern-bridge and Batchacre Grange to Bridge-
ford will be completed, as no country can be more
properly adapted for a navigation, being so well sup-
plied with water, and a little below Batchacre
Grange there is eight, miles without a lock. As I
have before mentioned the size of the boats for the
canal, I must give some descript^n of the size of
the locks, the quantity of water they receive and

discbarge, and then shew the quantity of water ia

I5tf ^irtA«» iTAVitfATitfjr;

store m tKe reierroirs, where they arc to be made^
and how' many bpats thalf quantity of water will
wxfkv to go through: each lock in a day. T^e caaal
js proposed to be nine yards broad at the surfeee of
lAie water^ sii yardj brc^ ali the bottom^ and five
feet deepi ih wat6r : the sides to be an aligk of 45
degrees; The boats are ta be 50 feet long, ari^ 12^
feet broad, and tarry 36 tons, and dtaw three feetj
water when loaded, with one mast to l^wer dowi^
Dpon deck, a marn-sdiii, fore-siil/ and jib, and ar
spare square-sail to hoist up before the wind : decked
from stem to sterh^ or as occasidii may require, Ond
horse will dni* these vessels at the rate of five or sfcfc
miles aii hoiir, and they will bear the tideswdy cipher
to Bristol, Li\/erpool, or HiiU, which sdves them the
trouble of re-shipping.

" The locks are to be 10 feet high, 6o feet long,
dnd 13 feet broad : the surfacd of water running inf
each time the lock is opened, will be the height of
the lock, 1 feet ; so that the waste of water at tha
locks amounts to 288;8 ciibic yards or 200 tohs^

" Now we arc to iec fiow many times that quan-
tity is contained in the reservoirs ; and the summit is
the first place to be considered, which is in the val-
ley below Offlcy Park. There is now a large re-
servoir of water at Offley Park mills, which may be
made 12 acres surface, and 10 feet deep, which
will contain 1 93590.6 cubic yards. There is also a
large sheet of water called Gockmere, S5 atrcs^
which may be pounded up 10 feet higher, both
which would amply supply the west course, as at^
Batchacre Grange you have a reservoir of 80 acres
of water, which, at five feet deep, contains 645074
cubic yards s on the sides of which the intended

CLoal 15 H> g^ which) wk)iout fonher supply^ would
be iulty sufficient; for the locks ^fr far as Scvrni, ^nd
sttiFer ^ Vea^l to pass throvi|^ th^ locks $6 t\mt%
each day. Numbers of b.ropks atid livery may be
]>ottBdtd up any wbepe the whole w^^y down to Tenw-
bndffft ^n the ScTefni Thefe i^ ao couatry 40 well
supplied with wiiDer fcH firequent passage as this \ft-
iwiedn Terii4mdge and Br^lgeford. Wo will now
Stic how the east coutse inay be supplied, r'\%, from
the flUnjvmi; below QfHey Park to Br idgef ord . Cock-
mere^ as before observed, ^ ^ piece of wafer of 3S
s^citSj which is ndw higher than the suminit of the
amily and may be pounded up to any height; 1^
y^xd.oT two witboiiit $ay damage, as (be banks on
each side are very high, and the valley above very
quick in the descent and narrow ; sq that the expense
€)f having a surface of water of 35 acres, and 10 feet
deep« which would coat^n 5646 ia2 cubic yards o(
water, and (ill the locks lQ5p times, would be .very
small. Many pla<;es all the way down to Bridgeford
might be made for reservoirs, which would supply the
Jocks down by the Trent to Wilder^ Ferry, at no
great charge or trouble. We will next cqnsiiler what
quantity of water we shall have tq sqpply the north-
west course of the canal, between tjie summit at
Madeley Park and Winsford-bridg? ; and therefore
observe, .that a large sheet of water of 40 acres, and
and fire feet deep at a meaq, which will contain
322637.5 cubic yards of water, may be made above
the north-west course, and suffer H 19 Boats to pa5s
each 40 days. As the current coming in, taking the
summer through, will be able in that time to fill the
same^in, the head of this rivulet here would be

SuiGcient for such SUDdIv at anv tlmfi. &nd fitifl&r OA

152 IKLANB NATI^ATION'.

boats to pass each day. The rivulet that rises io the
Can Bogs in Madeley P^k^ by making a dam at
Chariton, would be easily made to supply the south*
east course to Bridgeford.

*' The great matter is to have water at the head or
summit of your canal sufficient for a quick passage e
since if that is wanting your navigation is useless.

" I must here observe, that the reservoir at Madeley
Park will be full as lavish of its waters, and will be
able to supply as quick a passage as that from OfHey
Park summit to Tern-bridge or Bridgeford.

*^ There is no river that has such a length of navi-^
gation (in England) as the Severn : you may navi-
gate a vessel of Bfty tons, and not a lock the whole
way, 200 miles up to Welch Pool, encept in an
excessive drought, which does not happen every
year, and, when it docs, not above a month, seldom
two ; but upon a small quantity of rain falling will
give water sufficient. There are some few fords or
shallows below Tern-bridge, which may be easily
remedied. Between Tern-bridge and Bridgenorth,
which is 1 4 miles, there are several shallows that go
by various names ; but at any of which a well-con-
structed vessel, carrying 30 tons, is seldom or ever
impeded, except at the three following, viz. the
Lake, the Worps, and the Lydes. They all lie
within the compass of a mile, and when the vessels
come there, they take out about two tons to lighten
them, and put them into smaller boats, and re-load
again at one mile*s end, without any extra expense
to the person who sends the goods. These fords arc
partly opposite to Madeley wood. Between Bridge-
north and Bewdley are also shallows ; but they im-
pede vessels of that burden in a very trifling degree,

INX«AHB VAVIOAXIDir. 15S

except two near Bewdley. Below Bewdley to Red-
stone Ferry are two more shallows^ as bad as any of
the fbrmen

** Tlie reader will please to observe, that the lowest
water that ever happens in the driest summer is never
less than ] 8 inches, which is sufficient to carry vessels
of 16 or 17 tons burthen at any time.

^^The ri^er Severn is a free navigation, and no
tonbage upon it, and the number of persons navi-
gating upon it hve at various places, and are not
connected in a body sufficient to agree to remove
these shallows, or to apply to parliament to be in«
corporated for such a purpose ; and, what is every
body's business is n6body*s ; therefore the reader
must not be surprised why these shallows have not
been removed ; nor let him be more astonished, to be
infotmed that theyniay be remedied and deepened, so
as to admit vessels of 50 tons burthen, in the driest
Summers, for the trifling sum of 40l. each ; iind still
these obstacles remain neglected and unnoticed* I
would therefore propose, that the proprietors of the
Tem-bridge navigation here intended, should have
a power vested in them to lay out any sum not
exceeding lOOO/. upon the river Severn, from Shrews-^
bury to Worcester, in order to make the naviga-
tion of the Severn more commodious by deepening^
scouring, and widening the river and the banks there-
of. As also a power should be given by act of par-
liament for the towing, hauling, and drawing of
vessels and boats, by horses as well as men on both
sides of the river Severn. If the above requisites
should ever be obtained, the Severn would be then
the most complete navigable river, in the kingdom.

154 ikLAM) VAVICTATlOir.

*^ Though in the former patt (tf this treatise I bave^
pomted out a method) whereby this grand canal
scheme may be executed^ and have proposed th#
same to be done by a company of proprietors ; yet
I cannot help thinking, and strongly recommendingft
that government^ ahould undertake a thing of such
magnitude and maierial consequence to this nation,^
as the joining the three great ports of Bristoli Liver-
pooI| and Hull together by a navigable canal, as it
ought to be executed in a noble mi^nner, and not
intrasted to the interested and narrow-minded notion^
of. the upstarts of every little trading town^ whose
sole view will be their own good a,t the costs of others.
The design was great, and it were to be wished that
the execution was such that the canal may be made
of a size, Ividth, and depth as will admit at all timef
such vessels as will bear navigating through the tides
way in the channels.

" I have also, in the former part of this treatbe
(continues my authar)> describied the canal as proper
to be carried down to Wilden in Derbyshire; yet
Hpofi mature consideration, and having informed my-
self of many difficulties that may arise on account of
the floods from the river Dove, which would greatly
impede the execution of the navigation, by being
obliged to raise a high bank along the meadows for
almost three miles, with arches every hundred yards
for the floods from the river Dove lo pass through ;
I am, for these and many other reasons, inclined to
think that the canal ought to enter the Trent at
Burton, as there is a navigation made by authority
of parliament, and which is reported to be no very
bad o.ne. It is granted to the earl of Uxbridge, and
is now enjoyed by his lessees* The tonnage is very

rettofltble^ md largr tesieW may netvigdtc thereon.
Frdm Bttrtoft to Wilcbn k id milesi and the' water
in th« iWejT T|ieiit> i» deeper {fom Burton to Wildem^
than it is bekrtr WUderi ta Gain&bofougbi ai there
dre afore shaUows is proportion below WiMcti Ferry
to Gainfib4>rottgb thila between Buptm and Wildei^
^his I sbi^l explftiii ftirther on at a proper tinae)«
Between the latferi vessels from 30 16 40 tons may
Aavigale^ whkh are seld6m^ ex* nerer iittptd^d. Prom
Burton to Gainsborotigh is about 1 lO miles^ sltid
bdafs are frequeody knoi;^n to perform thlt voyage,
and back to Barton in eight days. Tdnndge 6n the
Btirton navig^ttfton is very nsoderate ; ndH^ can it bo
tonsidired iitaay ahipe aS a nx>nop6lyi as the tot^
nage of that riTer ftom Burton to Wilclen is no more
than 3d. From thesd, aind several other Arguments^
) am induced to think tbslt it lirduld save a considtr**
ablie sum of money, by having the cahal to enter at
Biirtori, I dare say^ at least lO,000/. to the proprie^
^rs ; but as I have pointed out the Other, I must
leave it to the considetation of those concerned*
But in case the canal should be made as far as Wil*
den, I think at least thdt the proprietors who have
been at the expease of the Burton navigaticm^ should
have as many sharte in it as their present debt anoounts
to^ or in sonie mteadnre some part of the tolls arising
from thd sami length of the tanal, as is opposite to
theif navigation, should be appropriated for the pay«»
itaent of the principal or debt lodged upon the
old nav^ation* I must however continue to thinks
that it would be no gteat detriment to the pub-
lic were the c^hal to terminate at Burton ; and for
my own pait would rather wish it, provided the
«ame was to ht put under the same directions; regu^

156 INLAND NAVIOATiOX.

lations, and orders, as by authority of act of parlia-^
ment the present canal is intended to be ; and that
the present lessees, when under such restrictions^
might be concerned as proprietors in the same.

" It is not requisite to my present purpose, that I
should enter into the minutias of every article in the
succeeding table ; most of which have been before
mentioned, either as produce, manu&ctures,^or com-
merce. I shall now shew the gross sum the canal
will produce, all expenses paid.

^' It will appear, when all circumstances are duly
considered, that the income of 15,285/. 16s. which
is computed as accruing to the proprietors of the
navigation, is, in fact, only a third part of the real
profits of the tonnage of goods ; but as it serves the
purpose of proving, that the income of this canal
will pay the expense of making it in a few years after
it is completed, and of shewing to parliament, that
the taking the same into consideration is worthy the
notice of the legislature to pass an act for that pur*
pose as a public good, and not only a local but a
national benefit.

" I will now proceed to shew what siun of money
the proprietors will be enabled to borrow, paying
five per cent for the same from the time the sums
are wanted, for the execution of the design. The
income (being only estimated as a third of the really
expected profits) amounts to 15,285/. 18^. which
will enable them to borrow the sum of 300,CXX) /•
leaving the sum of 285/. 18^. for repairs of locks,
and other accidents, and salaries to officers and ser«
vants; but if the income should in a few years
amount 45,857/. 14 s. it will enable them to bor-
row the sum of 900,0001. leaving the 857 /• 14 j.

nruLVD KATioA'Tra«r. I57

for repairs bf locks^ and salaries to officers and ser^
vants. We will now come to the estimate of the
expense of making and completing the canal ; and as
I have only before reckoned the income as chiefly
accruing between Bristol and Liverpool, and very
little on the part of the canal leading to Burton and
Wilden Perry, I will therefore first mention the sum
that will be required for making and completing the
canal from Tern- bridge, on the Severn, by Batchacre
Grange to Bridgeford in the county of Stafford, from
thence by Madeley Park in the said county, to
Windsford-bridge in the county of Chester, to com-
municate from thence with the river Mersey by the
river Weaver.

" The sum required will amount to 68,000 /. in-
cluding all things during the execution of the work ;
the interest of part of which must be paid out of the
fijnd until profits accrue, which may happen within
three years, suflScient to pay the whole interest, and
replace the deduction out of the principal; and as
the canal may be completed in four or five years be-
tween Bristol and Liverpool, the principal in six
years after might be paid off, and 22,000 /. over the
last year to pay off the interest of the sum in hand,
each year decreasing gradually for six years, the ac-
count will stand thus :

" The certain income of the canal is 1 5,285 /. ISs.
which, at five per cent, enables them to borrow in
the whde 300,000 /.

" The expense of making the caj;>al from Tern-
bridge to Winsford- bridge, 68,000/. so that if the
proprietors only borrow 68,000 /. the interest re-
quired to pay for that sum will be 3,400 /. there re-
main then J l,6oo/. to be dinded among the pro«

1^9 JiruMD ^s^fifuaitm.

prietprs ywly (lovor and abpve tfaie live pfr ^dot.);^
profits accruipg ftopi >«he ican^, .wty^h witl be^in ii**
come of ao L per c^^it. to ^ch prQji>rietorj ,<^c;l)#ise
.0f the 285. A ISs. whKh is allowed for npfj^^^^nt
accidents, and y.early 3$tlaric;s tuiofUcf^is^d^f^ftnt^.
Surely all persoBs will b^ ii^dpced ^ lodge their
niouey in this fund, not only tfi le|id4li>e)r ^^.st^Qce
to fio public a good, .but for th^ :9§itisfectiQa qfire-
ceiving yearly ao7. interest for his lOO/. so lent,
and the principal to be paid in ^ few ye^r^, Qr at any
time they choose it, and thereby securing a CArtain
annual estate for thepiselves, ^nd thqirhafs /or cyer ;
and let each person consider, that in .10 .or l% years
the income may amount to 45,000/. pei;annum. How
great and immense will the profits be to the propria
etors ! They must be such as to majlc« eyery one re-
pent that he had pot the foresight and :prudence to
lodge his whole fortime .in no glpripus .an under-
taking*

" 1 will now proceed to shew the expense of mak-
ing and completing that p^ :of the canal from
Bridgeford, in the county of ^Stafford, by StafFordy
Wplesly-bridge, and Bishton, in the said county;
thence by Burton to Wilden Ferry, on the river
Trent, in the county of Derby. The income of that
part of the canal (which I shall term the eastern
branch) is not very considerable, but will chiefly
anse from the carriage of corn and all sorts of grain
towards Wilden Ferry ; and the carriage firom Wil-
.den back* will, be chiefly in London goods brought
to HuU by sea^ and along this xut to the inland
towns e^st of .Stafford, being not many incumber,
as most ,of the . country about Stafford will be si:fp-
.plied. ;£romJBristoLi>r LiverpooL The. distance from

Bridgcford to Wildcn Ftrry is 48 miles j '9M tht
income to the propiictors may every year amount to
the sum 2617 /. lOs. fa tonnage of gpods pasdng
on the canal : the pmprietore will therefore be ena-
bled to borrow at five per cent, as before mentioned,
the sum of 51,$50L and the estimate of the expense
Qf making and completing the said eastern branch
will aniount to the sttm of 48^000 /• including all
things necessary. So that if the proprietors borrow
the said sum of 52,350 /. the interest at five per cent*
will be 2400/. and there will remain the sum of
217/. 10 X. to be divided among the proprietors as
the profits of the canal ; which will be more than
five per cent, per annum. I must also add^ that this
income will greatly and immensely increase whenever
"Wolverhampton and Birmingham shall have cuts
into it as before described ; and which are now^ and
have been for many years, completed.

^* The estimate of making the Canal from or near
Tern-Bridge, on the River Severn, in the county
of Salop, to the Junction at Bridgeford, in the
County of Stafford: the Distance being Sl-J.
Miles. Rise 136 Feet 9 Inches to the summit.
Fall to Bridgeford-Bridgc 54 Feet 8 Inches :—

IN the intended course of this
canal, between the upper end of
Tunstall Moors (in the valley be-
low Offley Park), and its junction
with a brook ivear to Cockmere : the
distance being a mile and a half:
the highest point of land being 2S

l60 INIJIKD KATIGJlTXOirfc

feet iiighi To reduce this to a level
J B yards in width,(being the breadth
of the towing-path, canal, and drains)
inu8tberemoYedatameanl98015.84
cubic yards^ which, at 3 d. per

yard^ will amount to <3^M75 8 ll|

. The canal is proposed to be Q
yards broad at the surface of the wa«>
ter, and 6 yards broad at the bottom.
These dimensions, in 3 H- miles, will
produce 687637 .5 cubic yards, to be
removed, which, at 3 d. per yard,
will amount to 8,595 9 4f

The canal, towing-paths, and
drains, being 18 yards in breadth, in
3 1 5 miles (deducting one mile for
waste land), there will be 199 a.
1 B. 20 p. to purchase which, at 15/.
per acre at a niean, will amount to • 2,985 O

Twenty road bridges, at 80/.
each, will be I,600 O O

Fifteen water bridges, at 50 /.
each, will be 750 O

Making towing-paths, drains,
gates, and fencing, at lO/. per mile . 312 10 O .

From the highest point of land
below Offley Park to the river Se-
vern (the fell being 136 feet 9
inches), supposing a lock necessary
for every fall of 10 feet, 13 locks
will be required, which, at 450/.
per lock, will amount to 5,850 O O

From the said highest point to
Bridgeford-bridge (the fells being

INtAND NATIOAtlOK* l6l

64 feet 8 inches)^ in the al!K>vemen-
tioned proportion^ there must be at
least five locks^ which at 45p/. each>
will amount to .... ^1,250 O O

Two funnels between each lock,
making 34in number, at 10 /• eacb^
will amount to 840 O

Five per cent, upon the whole for
unforeseen accidents 1>414 3 O

^26,572 6 4

To make the three shallows be-
tween Tern -bridge and Redstone
Ferry, and the two below on the
river Severn, to a proper depth of
water fit to cany a vessel of 30 tons^
in the driest summers, at 40/. each^
amounts to • ^ 20b O

N. B The eicact depth of the shallows in dry-
summers, and necessary removal, is before men*
tioned «

l62 INLAND NAVlCATiOjr,

" The Estimate of the Expense of ' making the
Junction above Bridgeford-Bridge, in. the County
of Stafford, to Winsford-Bridge, in the County of
Chester. The Distance 32^ Miles. Rise to the
Summit 100 Feet 3^ Inches. Reduced Fall to
Winsford-Bridge, 284 Feet 1 Inch : —

• IN the intended c6urse of this
canal, between the lower end of
Charlton Moss, and about half a
mile below Snape, the distance hie-
ing one mile and half, the highest
summit of land is an elevation of
25 feet. To reduce this to a level,
18 yards in breadth, which is the
breadth of the canal, towing-paths,
and drains, must be removed at a
mean 1 0801584 cubic yards, which,
at 3d. per yard, amounts to ^2,475 3 11^*

The canal is proposed to be nine
yards broad at the surface of the
water, and six at the bottom, and
fiye^ feet deep. These dimensions,
in 32 \ miles, will produce 7201 1 .8
cubic yards of earth to be removed,
which, at 3d. per yard, will cost. . 9,0O2 13 9

The canal, towing-paths, and
drains, at 32 J- miles, there will be
to be purchased 214 acres, which,
at 20 /. an acre, will amount to . . . 4,287 5 2\

Twenty- two road bridges, at 80/.
each • 1,760 O O

Three water bridges^ at 50 /. each 1 50 O O

l^tANO kAvieAtk^if. ]63

; Making toWing.path% back-
drains, gat€% and fencing, at .10/.

per cnile^ amounts to .... • <^'340^

From the junction above Bridget-
ford, to the summit in Majdeley
Park, 100 feet 3^ ioc^^es, supposing
a lock at every lo feet necessary^
it will require ten }ock% ix 45fiiL

each, 4^s(xx o Q

From the above summit to Wins-
fbrd-bridge, 284 feet, i inch fall ;
and suppo6ing as above, it will want

2S Jocks, at 450/. each, 12>doo O

Two funnel? between each lock,

will be 76^ ^t 10 A each, , j66

Five per cent, upon the whole for
unforeseen accidents i,793, 5

JUMWMilU4*.MMfM«

Total... ^37,658 7 2

■ ■ ' I I II I < l II

■:■■_ I I— #

'* The. Estimate of making the Caijal from the
Junction of the River Sow,^ above Bridgeford to
Burton, in the County of Stafford ; and thence to
Wilden Ferry, the Distance being 2" Miles to
Burtonj and 16 from thence to Wilden Ferry.
Fall to Wilden Ferry is 209 Feet 4 Inches :—

The canal is , to be nine yards
broad at the surface pf the water,
six yards at the bQttpm> and five
feet deep : these dimensions in 43
miles will produce 945621.6 cubic

M 2

l64 INLAND NAVIGATION'.

•

yards^ which^ to remove^ at 3d. per

yard, amounts to ^1 1,820 5 4

' The canal, towing^^ paths, and
drains^ 18 yards wide, and 43 miles
long, there will be 7,6 i acres and 2
roods, which, at 30/. per acre,

comes to ' 8,445 O

From the above junction to Wil-

den Ferry, is 209 feet 4 inches fall,

which will require a lock every 10

feet, will be 21 locks, at 450/.

each, 9,450 O

' Two funnels between each lock

are required, which make 52, at

10 /. each, and amount to 520 O O

Thirty-six road bridges, at 80 /.

each, . 2,880 O

- Seven water bridges, at 50/.

each, 350 O O

Towing-paths., bad drains, and
fencing, at 10 /. per mile, for. 43
miles, is 430 O

Five per cent, upon the whole
for unforeseen accidents 1 >677 5

•••■

Total ^35,572 10 4

Additional charges in banking for three miles, and
making arches against the* floods in Dove meadows,
not included in the above* account, 3000 /.

In case the canal should be carried no further than
Burton, and enter the river Trent there, it would only
cost 23,801 /. 4s. \d.

IHLAND NAVIGATION* l65

By carrying the canal only to Burton, to enter the
Trent there, the money saved to the public would be

11,771 /• is. Qdr

So far my author, whose plan was rejected. I
shall now proceed to describe the plan laid down by
Mr. Brindley, which plan was approved and im-
mediately carried into execution with the greatest
dispatch and success.

Plan of the Canal proposed hy Mr. Brindley.

I shall now proceed to describe the route of
the other canal, from the river Mersey to the rivers
Trent and Severn, planned and executed by Mr.
Brindley, engineer to the Duke of Bridgewater, with
its dimensions, the .expense of completing it, and
the reasons which induced the proprietors to prefer
Mr. Brindley*s plan to that of which I have just
given an account. I shall also briefly enumerate the
advantages to be expected from it to the produce
and manufactures of the counties it passes through.

At a very numerous meeting of land-owners, gen-
tlemen, traders, and manufacturers, held at Wolsdey-
bridge in Staffordshire, on the 30th of December
1765, which meeting Was attended by Earl Gowcf,
now Marquis of Stafford, lord lieutenant of the
county, and the members in parliament for the
county, and those for the city of Litchfield, and
towns of Newcastle- under-Line and Clithero, as also
by a great number of the gendemen of that and the
neighbouring counties, it was unanimously resolved
to apply to parliament for leave to bring in a bill
for making a navigable canal from Wilden, in the

l06 INLAND KAVIGATIOlTt

feounty of Defbjr, through StafFordsbirc^ to the rivcf

Mersey.

• Lord Gower opened the meeting with a very sen-'
sible and eleganft speech ; in which he expressed his
great satisffaction in seeing so many gentlemen met
pn 'SO great a design. He deckred, that he looked
upon it as of the utmost consequence to the manu-
facturers of that and the adjacent counties, and to
the kingdom in general ; that ever since he had
heard of the scheme, it had been his determination
to support St with all his interest, as well provincial
as pohtidral ; for he was satisfied^ that the landed and
trading interest were so far from being incompatible,
that they were the mutual support of each other ;
and therefore his Lordship hoped that every geiitle-
man present would concur with him in endeavouring
to carry so noble and so useful a design into execu*
tion. Mr. Brindley was then cfilled in, an4 ex*^
amined, and the heads of the plan were also pro-
duced and agreed to with very little alteration^ and
the neccssiary steps taken fcH* the intended appli-
cation to parliament.

It was then resolyed, That it will be most con-
venient for the execution of this undertaking, if the
expenses of making and completing the navigation,
which have been cpmput^ed at 101,000/. were to be
distributed into 505 shares, and raised -by subscrip-
tion ; and that no one person should have above
ao shares ; andthe money to be advanced by each
subscriber in equal proportions as wanted ; and the
shares made transferable by a form in the act.

That a subscription be opened for a fund to defray
the necessary expenses, in obtaining the act ; arid

IMLAKD NAVIGATION. \&!

Aat the money thetc stitocribed shall, after passing
the zct, be repaid to snch as shall not be subscribers,
and allowed to such as shall be subscribers^ in part
of payaieat of their shares.

That a subscription be opened for the money
which shall be wanted, for making and completing
the said navigafioo ; and thalt 14 days be allowed to
complete the said subscription ; and that subscript
tions may be entered with Messrs.
at liverpool, Manchester, Congleton, Newcastle-
undcr-Linc, Stratford^ Litchfield, Birmingham, Tana-
worth, Wolverhattipton, Walsal, Dudley, Burton,
Derby, Nottingham, Newark, Gainsborough, and
Hull, wbere books will be kept for that purpose ;
and an account is desired to be transmitted from each
gentleman, of the subscriptions at each place, at tho
cad of 14 days, to Mr, Sparrow in Newcastle ; and
if the subscription shall not then ht complete, 14
days mott to be allowed.

That if the shares to be subscribed s^ter this day
shall exceed the number which shall remain unsub^
scribed this day, they shall be reduced in pro*
portion.

That it will be convenient in the fexecution of this
undertaking, if the subscribers were to have votes,
according ta their number of shares, in the annual
choice of a proper number of directors, to be limited
ia the. act, who shall have the management and
infection of the work, and to have commissioners
named in the act to determine all controversies aud
disputes which may arise.

That proper provision should be inserted in the
act, for making fuH satisfaction to the land-owners
and their tenants for all the lands that shall be

1 08 IKLAllD KA VI6 ATIOl^*

taken for the use of such navigation, and for ali
damages^ both present and future, which they may
sustain thereby, and for the giving all prc^^r c{)n«^
veniencies . to such land-*owners, and their tenants :
the same to be determined by commissioners or juries^
where necessary, in the usual manner.

That it be' proposed for the consideration of par^
liament, that a proper and reasonable tonnage be
fixed by the act, in proportion to the distance that
each and every vessel may have to pass on the canal ;
and also that the subscribers may be paid five per
cent, for the respective sums advanced from the
time of their paying in the same, till the whole com-
munication shall be completed ; and from that time,
that they may receive their profits, according to their
shares ; and that the subscribers be permitted to
vote by proxy.'

' That no toll be taken for stone, gravel, or other
materials, for repairing the roads : nor for dung, soil,
or marl; nor more than half tolls for lime for
mortar.

Ekfore I proceed to the particular advantages to
be expected frorti this canal, it may not be improper
to state the reasons why a canal is to be preferred to
a river navigation, which are many and important.
The shortness of the voyage on the former, which is
protracted on the latter by the winding course of the
stream ; the absence of currents, which, in rivers,
impede the upward navigation more than they assist
f:he downward *, and hourly undermine and wear

* This advantage can hardly any where appear in a more full and
striking light, than at Barton-bridge, in Lancashire ; where we
fnay, at the same time, see seven or eight stout fellows labouring
like slaves to drag a boat slowly up the river Irwell; and one

IKLANB XATIGATIOTT. ifiQ

iway the banks j the security from the mischief and
delay occasioned by floods ; the easier draught for
the Worses, as the boats in a canal, move nearer the
towing-path ; and the advantage of choosing high
ground for the locks ; while • in the other case the
situation of them must be regulated only by the ac-
cidental shallows of the rivers — ^are all circumstances
greatly in favour of canals ; ^nd especially the last :
for as in river navigations the lock must frequently
be erected on low lands, the neighbouring meadows
are thereby often rendered damp and swampy ; while
in canal navigations this disadvantage is avoided.

This canal is designed to fall into the Trent at
Wilden, rather than at Burton, to avoid the shallows
which greatly interrupt the navigation on that river*
At Harecastle, the highest part in the course of the
canal, from whence the water falls north and south,
it will pass above a mile under ground ; by which
means fewer leeks will be necessary, and more water
supplied from tlie coal mines in that country ; and
the whole length of it, with its branches, will be
upwards of ] 00 miles.

The canal, and vesseb to navigate thereon, are
to be constructed on the plan found most eligible,
from various experiments made on the Duke of
Bridgewater's navigations. From these experiments,
his excellent engineer, Mr. Brindley, hath proposed
to complete this canal as far north as Harecastle,
purchase the land, erect locks, make towing-paths,
build bridges, and defray every expense, except ob-
taining the act of parliament, for 700 /. a mile. To

horse drawing two or three boats on the canal, which is carried
over the river at this pla^e like a magnificent Roman aqueduct,
38 feet above the level of the water below, .

170 INLAND NAVIGATION.

cut through Harccastle, it is supposed, will cost
lOjOOO/. and the remainder of the canal 1CX)0/. a
mile. He proposes to make the canal 12 feet wide
at the bottom, and three feet deep in general, but
at the fords only 30 inches, and in common to sup*^
ply it with a quantity of water just sufficient for the
navigation, have no stream, and be like those in
Holland.

The boats arc to be 70 feet long, six feet wide, to
draw 30 inches water when laden, and to carry 20
tons burden. They arc to be so constructed as to
be able to sail with either end foremost, by removing
the rudder, and to cost about 30 /. each.

There is to be a man and a boy to each boat,
which one horse will draw with case along the canal ;
but will be able to draw three of them.

It is proposed to raise the money by subscription
in lots or shares of 200 /. each. No person to sub-
scribe for more than 20 shares. The- tonnage to be
fixed by act of parliament, and vested in the sub-
scribers as a security for their money. The company
to be under the inspection of commissioners, as iu
most other navigation acts. The shares to be made
transferable in an easy manner, like government
securities. The navigation to be free and open to all
persons on paying the tonnage . 6xed by law ; and
land-owners to have liberty to erect warehouses and
wharfs on the banks or sides of the navigation.

r articular Advantages of the intendtd CanaL

The advantages arising from cheapness of carriage;,

and easy communication between the distant parts of
a country and the manufacturing towns and sea-ports
reciprocally, ar^ so exteusive and so complicated,

IRLAKD NAVIGATION. 171

that it IS impossible to reduce them to any exact
estimation. If we wouW attempt to estimate them
at all, it will be necessary to discover, as near as wa
tan, how much the price of carriage is likely to be
diminished, and what quantities and kinds of goods
will probably be conveyed by this navigation.

The course of the canal is from the Mersey, at
Runcorn Gap, into the Duke of Bridgewater's canal,
by Haulton ; thence up to Preston Brook, to near
Northwich; and thence to Middlewich, , Warming-
bam, Ekon, Sandbach, Lawton in Cheshire, Hare-
castle, Burslem, Newcastle, Shclton, Stoke, Fenton,
Trentham, Barlcston,* Darleston, Stone, Ashton,
Sandon, Shutbdrough, Haywood, Bishton, Wolseley,
Rudgley, Wichnor, Drakelow, Burton, in the county
of Stafford, Egginton, Weston, Aston ; and thence
into the Trent at Wilden in Derbyshire.

The price of land carriage, in the neighbourhood
of the canal, is upon an average about 9^. per ton
/or 10 miles. It is supposed ih^it the tonnage upon
the canal, for the same distance, will be about Is.
and the freight not above Qd. more, in all 2s. 6d. per
ton ; so that near three-fourths of the carriage will be
saved to the public. And the difference between
land and water carriage in other places confirms the
justness of this conclusion, Land carriage, for iur
stance, between Manchester and Liverpool, which
is about 38 miles, costs 40s. per ton ; water car-
riage by the Duke of Bridgewater's canal only 6s. 6d^
one way, and }0s. the other : suppose Qs. upon an
average ; ^nd the savinjg by the njivigation is about
three-fourths of land carriage.

If we suppose the saving to be only 6s. in 9^. which
i§ a ipoderate computation, this circumstance qlone

172 INLAND NAVIGATION.

will not only enable land- owners, manufacturer^^ and
merchants to convey many articles to markets where
they never could have borne the expense of land*,
carriage ; but will also bring into use many natural
productions, such as coals, stone of various sorts^
timber, iron ore, alabaster, &c. &c. which from their
unfavourable situations nei^er could have been em-
ployed.

To give some idea of the ad^^antages, we must
endeavour to enumerate the chief sources of employ-
ment for the intended navigation ; and these may be
considered under the three following heads: 1st.
Natural productions of the countries that lie near the
canal. 2d. Cultivated commodities and manufac-
tures. 3d. Imported raw materials and general com*
Qierce.

• From Northwich to Lawton, there lies a vast bed
of rock salt, about 40 yards thick, which, besides
being purified and crystallized for home consump-
tion and exportation, as will be mentioned in its
proper place, might be made great use of in agri-
culture, and probably in metallurgy, and several of
the mechanic arts, if any method could be discovered
of granting the liberty of using it with safety to the
revenue.

There is a mountain called Moleqop, near Law-
ton, that contains four useful different kinds of stone.
]st. Mill-stones, of an excellent quality, which are
now carried by land above 100 miles, and to all
parts of the intended navigation. 2d. A good lime-
stone. 3d. A fine free-stone. 4th. -Grinding stones
pf difFerent sorts.

Near Wolseley- bridge, and also a mile below
Purtpn^ a free-stone is found on the banks of. thQ

Hvtr Trent, exceB^nt for its firmness and colour :
some parts of which seem, not inferior to that of
Portland or Roch Abbey.

A mile from Rudgley, a blazing kind of coal^
called canel, and other coals are found belonging to
the Earl of Uxbridge. The lower stratum of these
mines is said to be very valuable ; and it is appre^
bended a navigable sough might be carried from the
new canal into the heart of them, in the manner of
the Duke of Bridgewater's in Lancashire : and that
this would lie them dry, the want of which is the
J)resent obstacle to their being worked, and at the
same time convey the coals into the new canal, to
the great advantage of the noble proprietor^ and the
neighbouring country.

Near that part of the river Trent, where the canal
is to terminate, arises a vast mountain of lime-stone ;
on which the village of Breden in Leicestershire is -
situated. At Tickenhall in Derbyshire, not far from
the last-mentioned place, there are also quarries of
lime-stones ; and at Barrow in Leicestershire they '
burn an excellent kind of lime for building, which is
conveyed to places at a great distance by land, every
way ; and lime is much wanted through the whole
course of the canal, both for building and cul-
tivation.

A few miles lower, al Clay Hill, an elegant, fine,
firm alabaster is found, proper either for stucco or
sculpture.

Not many miles from the Trent, near the river
Soar, in Leicestershire, are the noted quarries of
Swithland flafc, a beautiful and durable covering
for houses, and prodigious rocks of that kind of

174 tXLAM2> MAVlGAtI0K4

grey porphyry which is brought from Scotland to
pave the streets of London and Westounster.

A great quantity of marl will be thrown out ia
making of this cana] ; and may besides be found in
many places so near the banks as to be delivered from
the spade into the boats^ which will greatly contribute ,
to the improvement of such land as stands ia need of
this kind of manure. Other manures will also be
easily procured firom large towns on reasonable terms
for back carriage ; and as it is intended to exempt
manure from any charge of tonnage^ these ad van*
tages, together with the lime mentioned before, will
double the produce and value of much land near
the canaL

Several parts of the country, within a few miles of
the canal, yield great quantities of ore, called iron-
stone, proper for making cold short iron ; and which,
when mixed with the red ore from Cumberland,
makes the best kind of tough iron, called merchant-
able iron. The iron-stonfc of this country is likewise
so necessary for working the ore in the north, that
even the great expense of land carriage has not pre-
vented large quantities of it from being conveyed
that way by the river Weaver to be shipped for
Cumberland ; and the ore from the north has been
brought into this country under the like inconve-
niencies. It seems, therefore, highly probablfe that
the intended canal will occasion the sending much
greater quantities of iron-stone into the north, and
the receiving more red mine back in return, and
thereby greatly increase the intoroourse between
these two parts of the kingdom, to their mutual
advantage.

Not only these natural productions that are to be
found on the banks of the intended canal^ but many
of those from distant parts of the country it is to
pass through, will have their value and consumption
greatly increased by this easy and cheap conveyance.
Of this number are lead, copper^ calamine^ marble^
rotton stone, raddle, white clay, ochres, &c. and
many other articles will probably become useful to
society, which at present lie unmolested in their na-
tive beds.

From natural productions we may proceed to the
consideration of those that are cultivated and manu*
factured ; and that which deserves our first attention
on this head is corn : but this subject has been
already sufficiendy entered into in the description of
the preceding canal. I shall therefore only observe
that, in times of plenty, the land-owners and farmers'
near the canal will receive great benefit from the easy
exportation of grain of all kinds. In times of scar<-
city, the whole country will be relieved by a season-
able importation ; and thus the blessings of Provi*
dence be more equally distributed, and an artificial
dearth rendered almost impossible. How ineffectual
would be the attempt of the most powerful mono-
polizer in such a country as China or Holland, where
plenty can be thrown into any market from all parts
by means of navigable canals !

Another cultivated article of great importance is
timber of all kinds, oak especially, of which there
are many large woods near the course of the intendedl
canal, that, for want of a proper conveyance to sea-
port towns, where timber is much wanted for ship-
building, are sold in the neighbourhood at ^ low
price. Any method of conveying so bulky aoi

17(5 INLAND NAVIGATION.

article to places of consumption at an easy expense^
will greatly encourage the growth of it, and help to
repair that decrease of it in this nation^ which is
found to be an alarming circiunstance*

Cord-wood to make charcoal for the iron ^ works,
oak- bark for tanners, and woad, madder, and other
articles, which may become the object of cultiva*
tion, will be carried at a cheap rate on the canal, to
the mutual advantage of the proprietor and consumer.
Wool, hides, tallow, and provisions of various kinds,
will become more beneficial to the owners, by the
advantage of. an easy conveyance to where they are
consumed or manufactured.

As this canal will go through the middle of Che-
shire, so famous for the excellent cheese it produces,
the advantages arising to it from the dairies will be
very considerable, as many hundred tons of this
article are annually carried by land above 40 miles to
Willington in Derbyshire, to be shipped for London
and other distant markets, which will for the future
be sent by water all the way to Hull and Liverpool,
at a very moderate expense.

From the Wicbes in Cheshire manufactured salt
is carried on horseback to almost all parts of Stafford-
shire, Derbyshire, Yorkshire, Leicestershire, Not-
tinghamshire, and Lincolnshire, to which places it
will gain much cheaper kccess by means of this in*
tended navigation. And so great is the home con-
sumption of this article, that from the salt-works of
Northwich only, a duty of 67,000/. has been paid
yearly into the exchequer : at Northwich and Wins-
ford are annually made about 24,00O tons^

The town of Burslem, and villages of Stokes,
Hanley Green, Lane-end, and Lane-delf> are emr

WLANO XATiaATIOll. 177

ployed in maoafacturing various kinds of stone and
earthen wares^ which are earned at a great expense ro
all i^ts of the kingdom, and exported to America,
and the West Indies, and to almost every part of
Europe ; but the ware that is sent to Hull is now
carried by land upwardls of 30 miles to Willington ;
and that ^nt to Liverpool^ 20 miles to Winsfordi
This bunben of so expensive a land carriage to Wins-
ford ^nd WillingtOBj and the uncertainty of the navi-^
gation from those places to Frodsham in Cheshire,
and to Wilden in Derbyshire, occasioned by the
floods in winter, and the shallows in summer, are
more than these low priced manufactures can bear ;
and without some such relief as thi§; canal which is
undef cbnsideration, our principal potteries must
come to speedy ruin, as we have great competitors^
both in France and America, where they are pushing
that business forward to great advantage.

Ail the branches of the metallic trades> which
are almost innumerable^ and carried to any astonifih^^
ing extent at Birminghaoij Wolverhamptoip, Walsall^
Dudley^ and other places in the neighbourhood of
the . intended navigation, must receive advantages
ffoiQ if, that cannot at pttsent be estimated or con*

ccjivcd^

We haV'e already m^ntio^ied the important circum**
stance of bfinging ores out of the north to mile with
ihpse of Stadbtrdshire^ by ii^ich the iron of that
coitntry may be tendered better and cheaper ; and to
this vi^ may add the havti^ charcoal, lime, and other
fluxes brought to the furnaces at a small expens^j
and likewise t^ great saving there will be in '^ij^^
veying thisltea^^aracle from the forge to the manU^
facturer bj wateri^ "Phcic are circumstances which

J7d IXLAND NAVIOATlOm

must contiibate. to increase the consutilt)tioti of
English iiron^ and enable the iron masten in that
neighbourhood ' to enter lAto competition With
foreigners, so far as to reduce the price of foreign
iron, and upon the whok greatly to behefit both
themselves and the manufacturers ; and certainly the
first object of any manufactory is to furnish it with
its raw materials at the lowest price, to accontptish
which nothing bears comparison with inland imvi*
gation. ••

By the means of this canal the iron masters will
he able to serve tht tnanufactuttrs better with their
materials ; and by the same means the manufacturers
will be enabled to send their finished goods away
much cheaper, and to more markets, by which th^
consumption and exportation of them cannot £lil td
greatly increase.

The circumstance of a water conveyance all thft
way fl-om Birmtngham to the- ports of tivs^qJool and
Hull, will be a very great and reciprocal advantage
' to all the three places. The reduction in the pric*
df ^rriage, which takes pkce between Birminghao^
and Htill, is so great a proportion of ihi vata.e of
gun«, naik, and bther* heavy mahUfectitfed of irt^n^
that the exportation of them from thence nwist b*
increased beyond estimation. • .

The fine ale made at Burton-upon*Trent, which
!s now exported to Germany, t)tamark, Sweden,
Russia, and the- West Indied, may, by means of thii
intended canal^ be exported from Liverpool a$ well
as Hull, to those places wbete itbas become a very
considerable ariide of commefce.^

The valuable manufacture* of -Nottingham, Lei^
ccsier, and Derby> will find a cheap conveyan<Je td

IKLANP NAVIQATrOK^ 1/9

literpool by this na^igsition ; and the (kmand for
them at that port will be greatly increased.

In the Mighbourhood of Burslem^ bricks and
tiles are ma4^ pf a blue colour^ which are so vitrified
as to be harder than stone used in building ; and
these articles will find a de03,and through, the whole
course* of the canal.

Having mefifioned the priiicipal natural produc-
tions, cultivated commodities and manufactures in
the neighbourhood of the intended navigation, we
come next to the articles of importation and general
commerce.

Great quantities of flint stones used at the pot-
teries in Staffordshire^ are brought by sea from the
different parts of the coast to Liverpool and Hull ;
and the clay used in the white and coloured ware is
brought from Devonshire chiefly to Liverpool, and
from thence sent up the river Weaver to Winsford
jn Cheshire. The flints from Hull are sent up the
river Trent to Wilhngton in Derbyshire, and from
Wulsford and Willington they are brought to the
works, by land carriage, at a great expense, the one
beiDg 20, aqd the other 38 miles distant from the
potteries. And they are likewise subject to the same
delay from floods and shallows as mentioned before,
to the very great disadvantage of the manufacturers ;
and which nothing but a canal navigation can re-
medy.

Peals and fir timber for building, and mahogany,
which are much wanted, and are now very dear in
most parts of those counties through which the
canal is to pass, owing to the heavy charge of land
carriagiK upon such bulky articles, will be conveyed
thro^h the whole extent of this navigation at x

N 2

180 128 LAKH NAVIGATIOJT.

moderate expense, and will become considerable
articles of trade.

The numerous manufacturers of Birmingham, and
its neighbourhobd, will in general receive their raw
materials of all kinds much cheaper by this canal ;
such as copper, calamine, lead, zinc, irory, and
many others.

^tht merchants of Liverpool and Hull will supply
the towns and villages bordering on the canal, with
rum, wine, -tobacco, sugar, and all kinds of gro-
ceries and dying stuffs, at a lower price than they
have been used to receive those articles, and with
much more safety, cheapness, and expedition. And
as these articles are of general consumption, the
amount of them must be very considerable, and the
benefit to the public very great.

The salt trade will receive very important advan-
tages from the canal, when the navigation of the
Weaver may at any time be interrupted, as that
article may be forwarded to Liverpool by this con-
veyance, for the dispatch of those vessris which
would otherwise be detained there at a great expense.
And any injury the proprietors of the Weaver navi-
gation have to apprehend from it, supposing the
navigation should not terminate in that river, must
weigh light in the balance of public utility, as their
freight chiefly depends on salt and salt- rock from
Winsford and Northwich, which at present amounts
to about 50,000 tons annually, and will no doubt be
still increased. And none of this is likely to come
upon the new csnal, but when floods or the repairing
of locks obstruct the navigation on the river Weaver,
because the canal will be some rhiles distant from
Winsford ; and though it should come near the

INL AKP. KA VIO ATION. 1 9 1

works at Northwicb, the disadvantage of loading
and unloading, a$ the caaal vessels cannot live in the
tide-way, will prevent the salt being sent by tbeca^
except on such occasions as before mentioned.

Having considered the principal advantages which
the public may expect from the execution of tiiis
design, we ought not to forget the pleasures that will
arise from it to individuals, especially as taste is so
universally cultivated, that our farms are gradually
improving into gardens. And here it must be ob-
served and allowed, that to have a lawn terminated
by water^ with objects passing and repassing upon it^
i$ a finishing of all others the most desirable. And
if we add the amusements of a pleasure-boat that
may enable us to change the prospect, imagination
can scarcely conceive the charming variety of such a
landscape. Verdant lawns, waving fields of grain,
pleasant groves, sequestered woods, winding streams^
regular canals to different towns, orchards, whose
trees are bending beneath their fruit, large towns
s^nd pleasant villages, will all together present to
the eye a girateful intermixture of objects^ and
feast the fancy with ideas equal to the most ro^
niantic iUu^ons. If . these be the objects of profit
and pleasure, it is to be hoped every friend, to his
country will be cautious of giving weight to trivial
inconveniencies, even if they should occur, in oppo^
sition to a work of this immense importance, espe«
cially at a time when our manufacturers are suffering
for want of the usual demands for their goods ; and
when several rival nations, especially the new States
of America, (who have encouraged a great number
of pur best hands in all branches to emigrate to

1 82 INLANB K AVIGATIOX •

them) are exerting every nerva to avail tllemselves
of this opportunity, and are now daily 6e^ucing our
workmen in every branch of manufacture to leave
this country, atid contribute to the support of those
ftlarming competitors.

As I am desirous to anticipate every possible ob-
jection, in order to refiitfe it as far as my abilities are
able, the only remaining one that occurs m me (and
which indeed I mentioned before with a promise to
obviate ft) is, that by the inland naviga;tion the
coasting trade, that great nursery of seamen, will be
diminished. To this it may be fairly answered, that
as this inland navigation will give an opportunity for
an easy conveyance of the produce and manufactures
of the interior parts of the country to the neigh-
bouring sea-ports, which may from thence be con*
veyed by sea to the distant parts of the kingdom, as
also exported abroad to ' foreign markets, whence in
return other produce and commodities may be brought
back, the coasting trade must thereby be greatly
promoted"; and as this canal wiU contribute to in-
crease the produce of our farms, it cannot but bene-
fit our present manufactures, and occasion the iesta-
blishnient of new ones ; it must also of course en-
large our exports, and, instead of lessening, have,
in my opinion, a direct tendency to augment our
shipping, and the number consequently bf our sea-
men. But were it otherwise, are not the public
advantages which must result from this scheme suf-
ficient to counterbalance the loss of a few hands
taken from the coasting trade, even if such a loss
could be proved ? That, however, seems to me im-
possible ; and jhall the lessening of 70 or 80, or

even lOCX^^i^n.ia thQ.cpasdiig t<;pidc9«fiUr» a^!^
$uch t^vxqjs ^o4 ^(xpvicbfiosions. as^ 19 crush ,^ .sc^tof
ttim may pre^j^v^e thousands ffon^perish^i^ i Besidef^,
as o^e m^n ^a}id a boy ^ ^leaat, and in ixi^st la&(ai^^
twq fnen an4 ^ boyyjan4 ^^17 often fouiror £Lve me^>
will be employed, in ca^h barge, these will acquire
son^ie. knowledge of thi: nautkal profession ; aj^],
having been initiated in the ^use of oars and sails^
will, if wanted for t;hc reprice of their country, sooD
make good seamen.

It must also be observed, that when the other
parts of thi3 great design are executei), i^nd the priiv-
cipal ports and manufacturing towns of the kingdom
come to have a recipro<;ai inland CQpifTiunication by
welter, if the coasting tradis should be diminished,
(though I am certain to the contrary,) the export trade
will not only be greatly .enlarged, but the internal
national commerce will be carried on with much rvBor^
ease and dispatch; lea^* exposed to expensive and
hazardous deUys^ and. perfectly secu];e ia time of
war from an ei>emy, . . . .•

The other part of U)is grand design is ^0 hav6> a cut
for. a <:anal». of the ^anie dimensiop^ 4$- the former, from
out of the graod trun^ from the river Trcnjt at Hayr
woodi' At the confluence of tbf^-f river !^qw with the
Trent, .and by Baswick, A^rtOQjirQunsfi^ Ppnkrifige,
Brewoodj . Penf(Mxl, Tunstall, Tejttenhftll, •= ^\^oli^(U:-
hampton, Treasel, Wombprn, Jlollyaxrh, Prestwood,
Stourton Castle near Stourbridgf^^-Jsinfare, QyerJ^,
Kidderminster, and into the rK er Seyero^^ a kittle
below Bewdley. The ^produce .aptd. manufact^wsyaf
this part being nearly in all respects, the same.a& 4{i
the foregoing account of the other -part of theKanal,

184 XKLAK» ITAViaAW^V*

fhm lArtn^l to Hull, it will not be necieisaiy t^
«epett them. 1 shall only just observe whit a great
itdvantage it will be to the different manufacturers,
not only bordering on the canal, but for six or eight
miles on each side of it, to have a water conveyance^
from their own doors, as it were, to the three greatest

sea-ports, Bristol, Liverpool, and Hull, Another
branch has also been prcgected (and since completed,
of which I shall give .a distinct account hereafter),
by which this most usefii) inland navigation is czr*
ried into the Thames at Oxford, which will intersect
the kingdom by canals into four almost equal parts ;
the advantages of which ik beyond estimation. But
I most hcarrily congratulate my countrymen on their
spirit and perseverance to overcome all difficulties for
the public good, and the benefit of the nation.

How far these favourable circumstances must con-r
tribute to enhance the value of lands, and to pro-
mote the wealth and flourishing state of the nation,
is referred to the imagination of every intelligent
reader. To have the means of conveyance so greatly
facilitated, the price of carriage so materially dimi-
nished, old manufactures encouraged, and new ones
established, estates greatly improved, plenty widely
diffused, and the country rendered srill more affluent,
populous, and secure, are consideratbns of such
weight as cannot hil to interest all benevolent and
public-spirieH persons in the success of this most
important undertaking.

After giving, as I have done, the necessary detail
ef the particular advantages of this extensive canal,
and its intended branches, (now executed) by which
a communicarian will be opened between tfOndon,

Bristol Lirerpool^ and Hull, it may be thought, and
absolutely is necessary to give the different lengths,
falls of water, and the number of acres of land lost
or destroyed for the use of the canal ; these I have
given before relative to the former plan. I shall here,
however, give them for both navigations, to save
the trouble of a reference.

According to the first account, by the author of
The Advantages of Iniatid Navigation, the number
of acres necessary to be purchased was 494^- acres.

By Mr. Brindley*s plan, which has been executed,
the number of acres is only 482. The route of the
canal is from Preston Brook in Cheshire, to go into
the Duke of Bridgewatcfs, and to Runcorn, by Great
Haywood, to very near Litchfield, and fall into the
river Trent at Wilden Ferry. This canal comes
through the great hill, called Harecastle, more than
a mile under ground ; and from great Haywood, by
Wolverhampton, into the river Severn, a little below
Bewdley ; and, from Great Haywood, is called the
Wolverhampton canal.

By the first plan the number of miles to be cut in
length is 107 «

By Mr, Brindley*s plan the number of miles to be
cut in length is 13Q{ and one furlong, and which it
may be proper here to name.

From Preston Brook in Cheshire, to
Harecastle in Staffordshire 30

From Harecastle to Wilden Ferry, in
the river Trent , 69

From Great Haywood in Staffordshire,
to the junction of the Birmingham canal 23 |

Carried over .... 115 J

j#6 IKLAl}d NAVIGATION.

Brought over *•.. 116 §

Fr6m the junctipn of the.BirmingJiain . f
canal into the Severn, by Bewdley ♦ .34

Total number of tm^s- idg f

*-^»"

By the first plan the falkof water are 730 feet 5
inches.

By Mr. Brindley's plan the fiiUs of water are I069
feet.

The greatest objection made by the land-owner*
and farmers to inland navigation, is the loss of land
by digging canals, so £ir a3 private properly i$ afr^
fected ; but for this full compensation will be made^
as has been- mentioned befqre ; the act of parliament,
wherever a canal is made,, providing for evfiry thing
of this nature. Let us cxoly consider what an im-
mensc quantity of horse provender is consumed for
the support of that land carriage which these canals
are sure to. reduce; ai^d what a number of acres of
land will be brought into cultivation for wheat and
barley, which is now wasted for horses. It appears
that every horse employed on the road is allowed
xhree pecks of corn per day i and seven, qviarters of
oatson a?i average is tj>€ produce of an acre of land 4
whence it follows, that the 482r acre3 of land, lost hy
the canal on Mr* Brindley's plan wouW.kficp^nly
96 horses a year, and conse{|uently. aj^ the hprMs
used in broad-wheel waggons^ and in land carriage,
on or in the environs of the canals, abox^e 96, aw
saved to the public ;• and the land necessary to pro-
vide them t'ith provender may be employed to grov
wheat, and barley, one for bread, and the 'other for
beer, whjch will also increase the revenue, and will

keep at home great $ums of money which for manjr
years have been sent otxt of the kingdom^ for the
importation of oats from abroad.

It is on all hands allowed, that it is of the utmost
advantage and benefit to the nation, as w^Il as to the
land-owners, farmers, and manufacturers, even to
the lowest and meanest labourer and mechanic, that
these ihland navigations should be rhultiplied and
carried to the utmost extent possible. That they
have already succeeded boyond expectation is un-
doubted, and to this success may be attributed all
the cuts that have since been made to the different
manufacturing to^^ns, and even villages ; the num*
ber of which is considerable;

I shall now proceed, after giving the description
t)f the plans and routes of the two canals, as I first
proposed, to give the observations that Have been
made for and against the canal falling into the river
Weaver at Winsford, ratli=erthan into the Duke of
Bridgewater's tanal at Preston Brook, and so priv-
ceeding to "Runcorn ; and falling at the other end
into the Trent at Wilden Ferry, rather than at Bur-
ton ; and into the Severn at Bewdley, rather than at
Tern-bridge, near Shrewsbury*.

• Those wlio would wish to see all the observations and replies,
rtQiarks and counter.remarks, facts and reasons, state offsets and
reasons, cases, objections, seasonable considerntions, and supplement
to seasonable considerations, letters, &c. &c. ice. (too ^re diona ^
jnention, and I may say useless to this history) on these canals, may
consult the second part of a pamphlet, or History (as it is called) of
Inland Navigation, printed by Lowndes, Fleet-street, in IT^S.

]68 INM^^ NAVIGATION.

Real solid Reasons to shew that the proposed Canal
from the Trent to the Mersey ought not to tcr»
minate at Northwich and Burton.

That the good of a part must always give way to
the good of the whole, when they happen to inter-
fere, is one of the most essential principles of civil
association ; but it is at all times reasonable, that the
great interests of the community should be pursued
and supported with as little injury as possible to in-
dividuals.

In the course of human affairs, and during the
gradual improvement in the arts of life, small things
are constantly yielding to greater, bad to good, and
good to better, in proportion as human genius .ex-
pands, and enriches the world with its discoveries ;
and it is the unavoidable effect of every new improve-
ment in arts and sciences, to diminish the value of
less perfect systems, and works of inferior urility.

But it is a circumstance which gives much plea-
sure to the friends and promoters of the bill for a
canal from the Trent to the Mersey, that very few
individuals will suffer by the execution of tliis great
design. And when a work of this great utility is
under, consideration, it is certainly desirable to have
it executed in such a manner as to render it as com*
plete as the nature of the thing will admit.

The object of this design is not local, it is not con-
fined to a few towns or counties, but embraces the
great whole. A great and general diminution of the
price of land carriage, between the inland counties
and sea-ports, will contribute most effectually to in-
crease the cultivation of land, to reduce the price of

INLAN1> KAVICATI02^. 189

our manufactures, and to give us a superiority over
our most formidable comj)etitors at foreign markets.

And when the branches that are already intended
are executed, and othets that may be useful and
practicable, are joined to this canal, the trade of a
considerable part of the kingdom will receive the ad-
vantage of this new conveyance. It is therefore to
be wished, that the main trunk may be terminated
so as to facilitate commerce in the best tpanner, and
such as shall most easily admit of furtlfer extension.
For these purposes, the xindertakers of this intended
navigation are desirous that it may be terminated in
a free part of the Trent at one end, and carried to a
part of the river Mersey at the other, which is not

, liable to be interrupted by neap tides. By which
iheans a communication may also be opened with the
great manufacturing town of Manchester, and its
neighbourhood ; from whence the canal may be ex-
tended over the river into Lancashire, to the general
benefit of the interior parts of that county, as well
as the port of Liverpool, and of all the towns and
places through the whole extent of the navigation.

That it would be a very great limitation of its
utility, and consequently a public injury, to mutilate
this great canal, by terminating it at Burton and
Northwich, we presume will appear to every im-

, partial person, from the following considerations.
By means of the junction of the great trunk with
the Duke of Bridgewater*s canal near Preston Brook,
merchandise will be conveyed from that part of the
navigation near Middlewich to Mancliester, without
the interruprion of a single lock, or the expense,
damage, or delays occasioned by transhipping, uni*
formly and certainly in 1 2 hours ; and from that part

J 90

INLAND NAVIGATION.

^{ the canal opposite to Nortbwich in 10 hours.
But if this should terminate in the rivicr. Weaver at
Northwicb, there must be AQ feet of lock£^e between
Middlewkh and that place ; which^ at seven feet to
^ lock, will require seven locks, and between North-
wich and the river Mersey there must be five lockft
more ; so that all the good« going this way to Man-
Chester, and its neighbourhood^ must be carried down
% kind of navigable steps 7 5 feet to descend into the
Mersey ; and then be mounted up another series of
steps 79 feet high, to come into the Duke of Bridge*
water's canal to go to Manchester.

It is also necessary to observe, that all the goods
must be transhipped at Northwich, which must oc*
casion delays as well as damage, and that the vessels
must wait for a sufficient tide to carry them into th^
river Mersey ; and when they get there, they must
lie at anclior till another tide enables them to turn a
point of land, and get up to Runcorn Gap. This
will be the quickest passage they can make : but they
may meet with contrary winds, or stormy weather^
that may retard their passage many days longer.

It is also very material to observe the different
lengths of these two roads from Northwich to JVIan-*
Chester. By the rivers^ the distance is 48 miles ; by
the Duke*s canal, only 3% miles. -

Another very material circiunstancc attending car-
riage is the price of it. As the time and risk in going
from Nortbwicl^ to Runcorn, by the two rivers, will
always be as mnch^ and often more than in going to
Liverpool, the priqe will at least be equal* The
comparative expense of carrying -goods by the canal
.at Northwich, epd sending then> down the river
Weaver^ into the river Mersey, ; and up th^ Duke'a

IKLAKD IfAYIOATIOir. IQl

Otnal td Manchester; and of conveying them from
the same place upon a level through the two canals,
to that great manufacturing town^ will stand as fol-
lows:

Tonns^e and freight from Northwich
to Liverpool i3 5s. sJ. pet ton, utd we
cannot suppose it less to Runcorn) admit
it to be the same .«.•*.;. r. ;.l ..«.. .«^0 5 S

Whar&ge, transhippmg^ &c« suppose
only per ton #•«...... » « o O 9

fVeight and tonnage on the Duke^s
canal to Manchester per ton o 4

I*****

Total j6*0 10

By the Other way it *«H .^tand thus :

From Nordiwich to tht point of
junction with the Duke's canal at Preston

Brook^ being eight miles, per ton; ^eo 1 O

From thence to Manchidster ..;.... 046
Freight) 32 -miles, there being no

lock ..-;.;.. ^ 18

■ < I ■■ ■ II . H I fcl ■ m

Total.. ..^O 5 2

•A diflSsrence^ in favonrdf. the article going tom^r^^
ket, of 4^. lOiL in 10ir.:being very: nearly half, and
no ihipedimeiftd in theway^ ^

B4t si^^e the ei{»r^,i.upoa.thts cooiparisoir,
should have turned out? ^jtsst- time €aniR;ar}v ^d the
expense -hdd beBiveqtlll,:ibrtainIftherji8k.and delay
of the cixtditoos cofiveyanai<woalti prevent the Man**
chenter^j^Mds^ from ev^r b^dg sent this way: and
itid^, to all who know the drcumstances, the pro^
7

ig2 INLAND NAVIOATION^

posal must appear too ridiculous to merit a s<!riou$
refutation.

If gooda are taken off the canal at Northwich to be
sent down the Weaver, they will be liable to be re*
tarded in the first place at FicSkering^a locks^ about
four miles above Frodsham-pbiidge^ wbefe there is a
shallow, by which vessels are detained sometiuies five>
six, or seven days for want of water* The spring
tides flow only here about an hour and a half each
tide ; and it is only during that space of time (ex*
cept in land floods) that a boat can pass this shallow.
There is likewise above Frodsham-bridge a bar that
runs across the river, which, during low neap tides^
is impassable for three or four days. There are like-
wise several other shallows in this river. These delays
and inconveniencies render this navigation ineffectual
for the conveyance of the produce even of the county
of Chester, as far the most considerable part of the
cheese produced in that county is now carried b]^.
land even parallel with the whole length of this ex-
cellent navigation (as it is called) to Frodsham-bridge
and Bank Quay ; from which places it is conveyed
by flats to Liverpool, there to be reshipped for Lon-
don and other markets. Salt likewise, the other
staple article of this county, is sent in great quantities
by land carriage from Northwich to Manchester^ not
only for the supply of that town, but its exteosi^*e
•neighbourhood, and notwithstanding the present oa-^
vigable communication betw^n those places. Tliese
facts prove to a demonstration bow inefiecitiial the
present navigations are for the commerce^ of the
country they pass thonigb^ and how much the coun*
ties of Lancashire and Cheshire in particular are in*
terested in having a better conveyance. And by the

t||^ INLAND NAVIGATION. 3Q3

immense quantities of earth brought down by the
artifici^ river navigations (which are perpetually rob-
bing the land-owners of parts of their estates) the
depth of water in the rvers is constantly diminishing;
so that these interruptions will be always growing

worse.

Why should the merchandise on this great canal
be subject to go by a dear and bad way, when it may
go by a cheaper and a better ? This would be sacri-
ficing the public interest to a small concern, by which
no person can suffer, as the salt from Winsford and
Northwich will coprinue to go down the river Wea-
ver to avoid transhipping ; as that article alone will
pay the interest of the debt, and as a considerable
part uppii* that navigation may be paid off, if the
trustees think proper, before the grand trunk can be

finished-

Let it also be well observed, for it is a circum-
stance of great importance, that the water at Run-
corn is above five feet higher than at Pickeritig's lock,
and that such vessels as will be used in this trade will
not be liable to be interrupted there by neap tides.

These are facts, which, independent of the great
object of going by a canal all the way to Liverpool,
are, we presume, sufficient to convince every im-
partial person, that it would be agsginst the pubhc
interest to terminate the canal at Northwich.

It is likewise presumed, that the following impor-
tant facts will also shew that the other end ought
not to terminate at Burton.

The river Trent is navigable by nature from Gains-
borough to Wilden ; and by an act passed the 1 0th
and 1 Ith of William IIL the Lord Paget apd his
heirs were empowered to make it navigable from

A O

J 94 INLAM) NAVIGATION.

Wildcn to Burton ; for which they were to receive a
duty of 3d. per ton on all Vessels navigating that
part of the river.

In pursuance of this act, the river has not been
pounded one inch higher than it was before, and
consequently the navigation hath not been much
improved. Passages have only been opened through
two mill-weirs, by means of two locks, which have
frequently been made use of, not to facilitate, but to
obstruct the navigation ; and by a clause in this act
all persons are restrained from building wharfs or
warehouses on the sides of the river, without the
consent of the noble undertaker and the commis-
sioners. This circumstance, under the management
of the lessees, hath rendered the navigation a com*
plete monopoly.

The distance from Burton to Wilden, by the river,
is about 20 miles ; and from Burton to Wilden, by
the intended canal, only \6 miles.

If the canal should terminate at Burton, as the
mills and forge below the town are in possession of
the present lessees of that navigation, it would be in
their power, by drawing off the water, to lay the
boats aground between the warehouses and the mills ;
and thereby to distress the vessels, and to interrupt
all the commerce that might depend on that part of
the river.

There are upwards of 20 shallows between Burton
and Wilden, which are not navigable, except when
there are freshes in the river; but by means of flushes
of water let off from the mills, and by withholding
this water, the lessees may interrupt, and frequently
have interrupted, the navigation belbw Burton lock ;
so that the navigation of this part of the Trent de-
pends entirely upon their pleasure.

INLAND NAVlGATtOK* 1Q5

In the weir at.King*s Mills there are a number of
flood-gates ; one of which is very large^ and was made
by a former lessee on purpose to draw the water oft'
suddenly ; and by means of these flood-gates the water
may also be withheld or let off" by the occupier of
those mills, so as totally to interrupt the navigation.

In the year 1 74^^ the lessees took an opportunity,
when all the boats belonging to a certain company^
which they wanted to distress, were below this weir,
to sink a boat laden with stones in the lock ; and
this answered their purpose, although a great injury
to the public ; for all the goods that went down the
navigation during the space of 8 years and 8 months,
were, by the continuance of this obstacle, under a
necessity of being taken out of the boats above the
lock, and were then carried, or rather rolled and
tumbled, into the other vessels below ; by which
means many goods received great injury ; and much
earthenware especially was sent to foreign markets
broken and destroyed, under all the expenses of
whole, sound, and perfect merchandise.

If the canal terminates at Wilden, the manufac-
tures, malt, and other produce of those parts of
lieicestershire, Derbyshire, and Nottinghamshire,
that lie near to the termination, may be conveyed by
water from Wilden to Liverpool, and several nor-
thern counties, and entirely escape the shallows and
other inconvenienctes of the Burton navigation. But
if the navigation were to terminate at Burton, all the
goods going upwards from the above-mentioned
district must either be liable to the inconveniencies of
that navigation, or be subject to the expense of land
carriage of 10 or 15 miles ; which expense would
ct^nvcY them half way to Liverpool.

ig6 INLAND NAVIGATION.

In answer to the objection, that there arc several
shallows in the Burton navigation^ it has been replied
that there are several shallows below Wilden; by
which reply it is insinuated, that if we have V)
difficulties to overcome^ and cannot obviate them
all^ there is no advantage in avoiding qne half of
them : — an insinuation that might have some little
weight, if boats could not frequently pass over the
shallows below Wilden, by means of the additional
water and freshes of the rivers Derwent and Soar,
when the shallows above Wilden are impassable.

The low tonnage on the Burton navigation is also
produced as an argument against extending the canal
to Wilden ; but although the lessees are not empow-
ered to take more than 3 J. under the name of ton-
nage, yet they find means to* take eight times that
sum on the goods carried by others, under the name
of wharfage. And if it shoidd likewise appear, be-
sides the expedition and uniform dispatch of a canal
navigation, that goods may be conveyed to Grains-
borough, from that part of the canal opposite to
Burton, much cheaper than they are how carried by
the river, it may certainly be presumed the advan-
tage of extending the canal to Wilden will not
admit of the least hesitation ; and surely this is a
plan of too much consequence to be limited, for the
sake of those to whom the public are not so much
indebted for their past services, as to lie under an
obligation to indulge them in their attempts to pre-
vent any one else from serving it better.

On the best authority it is asserted, that
the present average price of carriage, by
the river from Burton to Gainsborough,
is l2s. per ton .^O 12 o

IVLAKD KAVI6ATI0N. * )Q7

Brought forward 4^0 12 O

From Wildcn to Gainsborough^ a dis-
tance of about 90 mileS) goods will be >
conveyed at 5 s. per ton O 5 O

-s^O 7 O

Therefore from Burton to
Wilden, about 19 miles, the
expense is 7 s. per ton O 7

By the canal from Burton
to Wilden, being about 1 5
miles, the tonnage and whar-
fage for that distance, at ] \d.
per ton por mile, amount to^O 1 10|

Freight, at the rate of &d.
per ton for 10 miles, is ... • o 9

O 2 7i 2 7

Here is proved the saving to the pub-
lic, by extending the canal to Wilden, of
As. 4[d. per ton O 4 4}

It is therefore humbly submitted to the legislature,
all these circumstances being considered, whether it
would not be a very great injury to the public to fix
the end of a canal, of such length and immense
importance as that- from the Trent to the Mersey, in
so bad a part of a river which is a monopoly, when
it may be so advantageously terminated in a better
part of that river which is free ?

igS INLAND NAVIGATION.

Seven public meetings, and three surveys were
taken before they would ultimarely fix on this great
national business, which from the first to the last
took up 10 years before the general approved fiat was
given to its exact terminations, on the 30th of
December J 765 ; but on the 27th of June preced-
ing, at a public meeting the plan was agreed on, the
heads of a bill produced, read over and approved,
and near 20,000/. were subscribed that day.

But at this time also another curious pamphlet*
was published upon this subject, of which above
1000 copies were sold and distributed ; and in this
pamphlet the intended junction with tlie Duke of
Bridgewater's navigation was expressly mentioned.

Upon an impartial and comprehensive view of the
case, respecting the intended canal from the Trent to
the Mersey, the friends of that undertaking hope it
will appear, that the great outlines of this design were
sketched out above JO years ago ; that the plan has
received many improvements ; and the preference
given to the terminations fixed by the bill, as it now
stands, is supported by the clearest reasons of public
utility ;. that the execfUtion of this plan will be a
great, permanent, and public benefit to the agricul-
ture and commerce of this kingdom ; that it will
reduce the price of carriage 6s. in ar. and thereby
enable ys to meet our commercial competitors at
foreign piarkets, upon much better terms thin

* A View of the Advantages of Inland Navigation ; prtDte4
for Becket and De Hondr in the Strand, and Johnson and Daven.
port, Paternoster.row s to which I beg leave to refer for ample
proofs of the utility of the intended canal from the Trent to the
Mersey.

INI AND NAVIGATION. IQQ

we can at present; that it will greatly preserre
the public roads^ and lessen the expense of keeping
them in repair ; that it will advance the wealth and
strength of the nation^ by increasing the quantity of •
our home products and of our exports, and by finding
employment for a greater number of vessels and sea-
men ; that it will diffuse a spirit of navigation through
the very heart of the kingdom^ and> by bringing
many boys and youths from the inland towns towards
the sea-port towns, greatly increase, the number of
our sailors ; that it will find immediate and constant
employment for vast numbers of people : and, lastly,
that it will have ^tendency to prevent monopolies of
the necessaries of life, by opening so extensive and
cheap a communication between the interior parts of
the kingdom and our manufacturing towns, villages,
and sea-ports ; for the attempts of the most powerful
monopolizer must certainly be ineffectual in a coun-
try where plenty can be thrown into any market,
from all parts, in a very short time, by . navigable
canals.

I gientioned giving answers to both plans of canals,
but that being chiefly done as I went along with the
lasti a long />r{7 and con story is useless, and not agreeable
to the brevity with which I mean to treat the subject,
I design to extract every thing useful and interesting
in the shortest manner possible. Those whose curi«
osity ^d leisure create a desire of further particulars
I refer to my quarto volume, and the pamphlets I
have mentioned ; I shall omit any farther account of
the Trent and Mersey canal, to give the particularsL
of other navigations cut out of this great trunk. ,
Sut before I proceed,! must beg leave to observe

200 INLAND NAVIGATION.

that during the contest of parties, a bill was brought
into parliament by the Cheshire gentlemen in order
to establish the Macclesfield canal. It passed tht

. House of Commons, but was dismissed by the
Lords. Another bill, for leave to cut a navigation
from Wilden Ferry to the Duke of Bridgewater's
canal at Preston Brook, and from thence jointly to
be carried on to the river Mersey, at or near Runcorn
Gap, passed both houses of parliament. As did a
third bill for cutting a navigable canal from the river
Severn between Bewdley and Titton Brook in Wor-
cestershire, to cross the river Trent at or near Hay-
wood Mill, in Staffordshire, called the Wolver-
hampton canal, and which I have mentioned in
treating of the last canal, and intended to cdmmuni-

* cate with the canal to be made from the Trent to the
river Mersey, as before described.

CovENTBY Canal to Oxford.

A meeting wa> held at Banbury on the 3d of
October 1768, and again on the 25th of the same
month, to take into consideration proposals for mak-
ing a canal from the city of Coventry into the river
Thames at the city of Oxford ; which meeting was
attended by a great number of nobkmen, gentlemen,
land-owners, merchants, and capital manufacturers,
not only of the county of Oxford, but also of all the
neighbouring counties ; among whom were the
Dukes of Marlborough and Buccleugh, the Lords
Spencer, Guildford, and North, the Vice Chancellor,
and many of the heads of houses, thd two members
for the University, with many other gentlemen of
great weight and consequence, as well as the corpo-

IKLAND NATIGATION. 201

lotions of Oxford, Woodstock, Banbury, and Co-
ventry ; and upon the great and important question
of a navigable canal projected by Mr. Brindley to be
cut from Coventry to Oxford, the company present
were perfectly unanimous with respect to the utility
of the design, and shewed an uncommon alacrity in
raising the money to carry it into execution ; at the
same time expressing their most sanguine wishes for
the success of the undertaking.

It was proposed to make this navigable canal to
communicate with the canal now making from the
city of Coventry to the great Staffordshire navigation,
which joins the grand trunk at Litchfield. The
canal is intended to pass through the several parishes,
hamlets, or places of Stoke, Binley, Comb, Brinklow,
LongLawford, Newbold, Brownsover, Clifton, HiU*
morton, Barby, WilloughBy, Braunston, Wolf ham-
cote. Lower Shuckburgh, Napton, Priors Marston,
Priors Hardwick, Wormleighton, Penny Compton,
Burton, Dassett, Warmington, .Shotwell, MoUing-
ton, Horley, Neithrop, and Banbury; and from
thence through Adderbury, Deddington, North
Aston^ Middle Aston, Steeple Aston, Rousham,
Shipton, Hampton Gay, Yarnton, and Woolvercot,
to the city of Chcford, to communicate with the na-^
vigation of the Thames ; which places had been sur-
veyed by Mr. Brindley, and the undertaking found
to be ' practicable.

The sense of the county being known by the above
meeting, Mr. Brindley's report and proposals were
taken into cohsideration, and it was resolved to apply
immediately to parliatnent for permission to carry this
great design into execution ; a design of the most

202 IKLANB KAnOATIOK,

general and extensive utility to the public at large,
and highly conducive to the particular benefit o{ the
counties of Warwick, Northampton, and Oxford.
It was also resolved, that should the application to
parliament be crowned with success (of which no
doubt could be entertained), the undertaking should
be vested in a company subscribing according to cer*
tain rules, as laid down in the act, and receiving profits
agreeable to other navigation acts lately obtained.

Upwards of 50,000 /• were instantly subscribed by
the company then present, for the immediate sup-
port and promotion of the plan ; and Mr. Dadley,
of Coventry, and Mr. Walker, town-clerk of Ox-
ford, were ordered to prepare and solicit the bill, and
subscriptions for the residue of the sum wanted were
soon completed.

By the Coventry act 50,000 /. is the original sum
to be raised. This sum is divided into 500 shares of
lOO/. each. The shares are made personal estate,
and transferable as such. The money subscribed
in shares is made payable by different calls or instal-
ments ; and no call is to exceed ten per cent, at any
one time, and between every call to that amount must
be an interval of three mouths. The facility of pay*
ment under this provision need not be enlarged upon.
An interest of 5 /. per cent, regularly paid at a stated
day in every year, attends the sum advanced upon
every call ; and when the whole navigation is com-
pleted, every proprietor becomes entitled to a share
of the full profit, answerable to the number of shares
^f which he may be possessed.

The promising state of the Cheshire and StafFord-
^hire navigations encouraged the gentlemen of War-

IJlttk^J} KAVIGATIOK. 203

wickshire to set on foot another branch of inland
navigation^ and which extends from the grand trunk
at Fiadley Heath, in the county of Stafford, to the
city of Coventry, to join that canal which is cutting
into the river Thames at Oxford ; and it is proposed
to carry on the same from Coventry by the town of
"Warwick to Stratford-upon-Avon.

An act having been obtained for the completion of
that part of this canal which goes to the city of Co-
ventry, and which there joins the canal to Oxford ;
which canal is finished, and has enabled the pro-
prietors specified in the act to cut through the dif-
ferent parishes, hamlets, and places of Fradley near
Litchfield, Streethay, Huddlesford, Whittington,
HoppaS, Bonehill, Fazeley, Tarn worth, Ammington,
Poleswofth, Grindon, Dordon, Merivale, Atherstone,
Mancetter, Hartshill, Nuneaton, Coton, Bedsworth,
Exhall, Longford, Foleshill, to the city of Coventry,
with branches out of the said canal to the several
coal-works in its route.

This canal from Fradley Heath to Coventry was
begun in 1768, and but small progress was made in
it for some time, when it was found absolutely ne-
cessary, on account of other ^uts requisite to be made
to different towns and villages, and also to some col-
lieries in the neighbourhood of this canal, to apply
again to parhament, which was done in 1784, to ex-
plain and amend the former acts ; and also to incor-
porate in one the different cqmpanies, aqd cqnnect
the different canals.

The act obtained in consequence of this application
is entitled. An Act to enable the Company of Pro-
prietors of the Navigation from the Trent to the
Mersey, and the Company of Proprietors of the

204 INLAND NAVIGATION;

Navigation from Birmingham to Fazelcy, to make a
navigable Canal from the said Trent and Mersey Na*
vigation (the Grand Trunk) on Fradley Heath in
the County of Stafford, to Fazeley in the said County 5
and for confirming certain Articles of Agreement
entered into by the said Trent and Mersey, the Ox-
ford, and the Coventry Navigation Companies. — .
Here follows a very long act, which is useless to be
repeated here. It may always be bought by the
curious.

The course of these canals has been given before.
I have now to give the lengths, falls, and rises. From
the grand trunk at Fradley Heath to the junction at
Fazeley is 1 1 miles, on a level. From Fjizcley to
Atherstone is 10 miles, with 87 feet rise. * Ffom
thence to Coventry is 17 miles on a level ; making a
total distance to Coventry 38 miles. From Coventry
to Hill Morton is 27 miles, and level. From thence
to Marton-doles is 18 miles, with a rise of 76 feet 4
inches. From thence to the extent of the summit
sear C-Iaydon is 1 1 miles, and level ; and from thence
to Oxford is 36 miles, with a fall of 180 feet 6
inches. Total distance from Coventry to Oxford is
92 miles.

Nov. 1802. — Remarks on the progress of Canals*

Coventry canal shares have fallen from 400 /. to 350 /. the com.
petition between that and the Warwick has lessened the profits of
both. The former, an old established concern, will not submit to
be underworked by the latter. They will soon come to a better
understanding. In the mean time the pnblic are benefited by the
low rates levied by each. Coventry last dividend was 8 /•

Birmingham and Fazelet Canal.

In 1785 an act of parliament was obtained to ena-
ble tlie company of proprietors of the navigation from

INLAND NAVIGATION. 105

the Trent to the Mersey, and the company of pro-
prietors of the navigation from Birmingham to Faze-
Icy, to make a navigable canal from the said Trent
and Mersey navigation on Fradley Heath, in the
county of Stafford, to Fazeley, in the said county,
and for confirming certain articles of agreement en-
tered into between the said Trent and Mersey, the
Oxford, and the Coventry canal . companies* The
act contains first a recital of the act of 6 Geo. III.
for making a canal from the Trent to the Mersey ;
and also of the act of the l6 Geo. III. for making a
branch to Fro^all and Caldon for the conveyance
of coals, stone and other goods, and' to and near
several Ume-works and lime-stone quarries which arc
at or near Caldon in the county of StafFord, which
branch has been made and, completed. It also re-
cites another act passed 23 Geo. III. for consoUdating
the said canals, and an act of 8 Geo. III. for mak-
ing a canal from Coventry to join the firsr- mentioned
canal on Fradley Heath. It also recites another act
of () Geo. III. for making a canal from Coventry to
Oxford, and an agreement of the delegates from the
said companies at Coleshill in the county of War-
wick, on the 20th June 1782. Then follows a part
of act of 23 Geo. III. for making the canal from
Birmingham to Fazeley, and for ratifying the ar-
ticles of agreiement of delegates, dated 20 Oct. 1783,
whereby the said portion of canal is divided between
the said two companies.

After numerous other articles unnecessary to men-
tion, this undertaking is declared consolidated with
the others of the Trent and Mersey navigations, and
the proprietors are empowered to borrow lO.CKX) /.
and assign the tolls as security ; and after reciting the

ao6 I>?JLAND NAVIGATION*

artides of agreement between the grand trunk and
Coventry canal companies of the 29th of Oct. 1783,
and confirming the said agreement, and providing for
equalizing the tonnage of coals upon the Oxford and
Coventry canal, the act is declared to be a public

act.

On the 12th of July ]790, the aqueduct across
the river Tame near Birmingham, in the county of
Stafford, was finished ; and the Coventry canal, with
the grand trunk, and Birmingham and Fazcley na-
vigations, completed ; and thereby the long desired
communications by inland navigation between the
ports of London, Bristol, Liverpool, and Hull, are
completely opened.

The length of this canaljr from Birmingham to
Fazeley, is 16;- miles ; and it has a fall of 248 feet-
This includes the collateral cut to Digbeth, in Bir-
mingham. The length of the canal from the grand
trunk at Stoke, near Newcastle, to Ffoghall and
Caldon coal-pits and Ume-stone quarries, is 19 miles
3 furlongs 18 chains^ with a rise of 75 feet in the first
6\- miles to Stanley Moss ; and a fall of 60 feet 30
inches, the remainder of the way to the coal-pits and
lime-quarries. Another canal has also been cut from
Bidcr's Green, hear Birmingham, to Broad-water fire-
engine coal-mines, being 4| miles and 6 chains, with
a fall of 46 feet.

Droitwich Canal.
The course of this canal begins in the town of
Droitwich, and county of Worcester, and near Apple-
tree Hill, whence it proceeds to Bryer's Mill, and
over Falsham-Pill Brook to Salwarp, over Martin
Brook by Hill End, through Ladywood, over Atter-

INLAND NAVIGATIOl^. 20?

burn Brook, by Jacob's Ladder and Hawfofdrough
to Hill Top, and cross the road from Kidderminster
to Worcester, by Hawford House, into the Severn,
near the place where the little river Salwarp joins^ the
Severn, being a navigable course of five miles and five
forlongs, and a fall of 56 feet 6 inches. The par-
ticulars of the trade, manufactures, and produce I
have before given at large; when treating of the course
of the intended navigations, which have been since
executed, for joining the rivers Severn, Trent, and
Mersey, to communicate with Bristol, Liverpool,
and HulL

A short description of the river Severn, I hope will
be acceptable; few people, even in the eastern,
southern^ or northern parts of England, have an idea
of the length of its navigation, or the great trade
G^ried thereon, which has been an inducement for
canals to be cut at every part possible to have the
advantage of carrying their manufactures and pro-
duce of the interior counties by water to Bristol,
where they are sure of a market.

The river Severn has its source from a large bog
on the top of Plinlimmon, a mountain in Montgo-
meryshire in North Wales ; from whence, rushing
down with a swift current, and being joined by many
lesser torrents, it presently appears considerable ; and
passing by Llanydlos and Newtown becomes navi-
gable near Welchpool, where the river Verncw joins
it, with a stream very little inferior to its own ; from
thence it proceeds on gently to Shrewsbury, which
it surrounds nearly in the form of a horse- shoe, it
then flows on through a rich vale, with many exten-
sive windings, till it comes to Benthall Edge, by the '
way receiving into it the riVer Tern, which waters all

208 INLAND NAVIGATION.

the north of Shropshire. Here the Severn begins to
be rapidj being pent up between two opposite hills,
both very lofty and steep ; and from thence to
Bridgeporth and Bewdley the channel is qonfined by
high woody banks and rocky cliffs, which afford
variety of beautiful prospects. Afterwards it gently
glides on through the fruitful plains of Worcester-
4iire, visiting in its way the city itself, and a little
below is considerably augmented by the influx of the
river Teme. This addition, however, is much in-
ferior to that which it receives from its junction with
the river Avon at Tewksbury, which is navigable up
to Pershore;, Evesham, and Stratford. These two
rivers thus united pursue their course to Gloucester,
and about 50 miles below that city the n^jhf of Se-
vern is lost in the Bristol Channel.

This . river, justly esteemed the second in Britain,
is of great importance, being navigable by vessels of
large burthen more than l6o miles from the sea,
without the assistance of any lock. Upwards of
100,000 tons of coals ace annually shipped from the
collieries about Madeley and Broseley, for the cities
and towns situate on its banks, and thence conveyed
into the adjacent countries. Great quantities of grain,
pig alid bar irpn, iron manufactures, and earthen-
ware, as well as wool, hops^ cyder, and provisions,
are likewise continually sent to Bristol, and other
places, from .whence various kinds of goods are
brought in return. The freight from Shrewsbury
to Bristol is about lOs. per ton, and from Bristol to
Shrewsbury 1 5s. per ton. The rates to the inter-
mediate towns are in proportion,

The following are the distances and rise for the
first 70 miles, viz. From Gloucester to Worcester 30

INLAND NAVIGATION. 20Q

mWes, rise 10 feet. From thence to Stornport }3
miles, rise 23 feet. From thence to Bridgenorth 1 8
miles, rise 41 feet 9 inches. From thence to Mea-
dow Wharf at Coalbrook Dale 9 miles, rise 29 feet
6 inches. Total rise 104 feet 3 inches.

This traffic is carried on with two sorts of vessels :
the lesser sort are called barges and frigates, being
from 40 to 60 feet in length, having a single mast
and square-sail, and carrying from 20 to 40 tons
burthen. The trows, of larger vessels, are from 40
to 80 tons burthen. These have a main and top
mast about 80 feet high, with square.sails, and some
of them have mizeh masts : they are generally from
16 to 20 feet wide, and 16 in length, being when
new and'tOmpletely rigged worth about 300 /.

In May 17 06 the number of barges and trows on
the river Severn, navigating from Welchpool and
Poolstake downwards to Bristol, amounted to 376 ;
tind since that time, by the addition of the inland
navigation from the Trent, Mersey, and the Thames,
into the Stroud navigation, they may now be fairly,
calculated at double that number. These are na-
vigated by three or four, and some by six or eight
men, who are generally hardy, robust,, and resolute ;
so that this navigation proves a valuable nursery for
seamen.

Junction op the Thames and the Severn.

Preamble extracted from the act of parliament passed

in 1783.

Whereas the qiaking and maintaining the canal,
with a proper collateral cut for the navigation of
boats, barges, and other vessels from the river
Thames or Isis, at some place at or near Lech lade in

210 INLAND NAVIGATIOMT.

the county of Gloucester, to join and communicate
with a navigable cut or canal now made between the
to^n of Stroud and the river Severn, in the said
county of Gloucester, will open an easy communi-
cation between the interior parts of the kingdom and
the port of London, which will be of great advan-
tage to many of the sea- ports of this kingdom, and
will afford a supply of coals to those parts of the
country through which the intended canal and col-
lateral cut are proposed to be made ; and wiB also be
of great public utility : And whereas the several per-
sons hereinafter particularly named are desirous, at
their own proper costs and charges, to begin, carry
on, complete, and maintain the said navigable canal
>nd collateral cut^ intended to be made by virtue of
this act; biat the same cannot be effected without
the aid and authority of parliament : wherefore, for
the obtaining and perfecting the good ends and pur-
|>osea aforesaid, &cc: &c. &c.

N. B. It beirfg a me^t extraordinary Jong act, and
as a-ishort abstract would matilate it saas to render
it alrtiost unintelligible, I therefore omit it attogether,
especially as those who particularly want to see it can
at any time purchase it*

History inforrhs ITS, that so . long ago- as the reign
of Charles II. a project was set on foot for uniting
the Thames with the Severn, by cutting a channel of
above 40 miles in length ; and that a bill was brought
for that purpose into the House of Commons. Joseph
Mbxon, who was hydrographer to the king, and an
excellent raathematiciair, drew a map for Mr.
Matthews,, to shew that the scheme was practicable.

In Dr. Campbeirs Political Survey of Great Britairti
he observes^ that ** the correspondence between Lon-

INLAND NAVIOATIOJr. 211

don and Bristol being very expensive by land, and
tedious bjr sci, it. was natural to endeavour at finding
some means of lessening at least, if not removing,
these inconvenicncies. In order to this it was pro-
posed to make use of the river Avon, which runs to
Bristol, and the Kenhet, which falls into the Thames ;
but it does not appear that this went any further than
speculation, jn the reigh of Charles IL a bill was
brought into the House of Commons, to unite, by
a new cut from Lechlade, the Thames with the Avon,
that passes through Bath. Captain Yarrahbn pro-
posed the same thing, by uniting the Thatnes by the
Charwell, to the Avori by the Stour, and so to the
Severn, with only eight miles of land-carfiage. It
seemed quite necessary to mention these, bfccause it
tnay become requisite to review And fix xjn some one
of them at a future time, when, in consequence of a
hiethod to be hereafter explained, a communication
shall be accomplished between Hull, Liverpool, and
Bristol ; fot in that case some such communication
by water will be necessary to maintain that inter-
course bfetween the midland counties and the capital,
which is of so great consequence to both."— So far
Dr. Campbell. It is needless to observe, that what
he suggested is now completed, although not by the
course he has pointed out.

The execution of this grand work, with others
equally wonderful and useful in different parrs of this
kingdom, was reserved fbr the reign of George III.
I shall hereafter mention the canal cut from Stroud
to the Severn, near Framiload, after manf unsuc-
cessful attempts to make the river Stroudwater navi-
gable. Mr. Robert Whitworth, that able and suc-
cessful engineer itt works of this kind, was employed

p 3

212 INLAND NAVIGATION.

in 1782, at the desire of several opulent private
persons, chiefly merchants of London (not the cor*
poration), \vho had no local interest in either of the
counties of Wilts or Gloucester, through which the
canal passes. The act passed in 1783; and was
agreeable to the plan and estimate of their engineer,
who had stated the sum requisite to complete the
undertaking at 1 30,000/. and was empowered to bor-^
row a further sum of 6o,000/. more on mortgage, if
wanted, to finish the canal, under their common
seal*

So favourable an idea was entertained by the citi-
zens of London of the utility of this junction of the
Thames with the Severn, that if its completion had
called for a million insteadof 130,000/. the ftind would
have been presently subscribed. The connections
of one mercantile house alone subscribed 23,000/.
and several others 10,000/. each.

This navigable canal begins at Wallbridge, near
Stroud (at the very place where the Stroud naviga-
tion ends), and proceeds to very near Lechlade, on
the river Thames, being a distance of 30 miles 7^
chains, exact measurement. The general breadth
of the canal is 42 feet at top, and 30 feet at the
bottom. In many places, where the ground is a
dead level, it is considerably wider ; the banks and
towing-paths being made entirely with the soil dug
from the canal. The tunnel at Sapperton is nearly
2^ miles in length, being lined with masonry, and
arched over at top, with an inverted arch at the bot-
tom, exqgpt at some few places^ where the solid rock
being scooped out renders it unnecessary. The ex-
pense of which was about 8 guineas per cubic yard.
The boats are 12 feet wide, and 80 feet long, and

»I.AKI> NAVIGATIOIT. 213

when loaded draw four feet water, and will carry 70

tons.

In order to form any judgment of the importance
to commerce of this undertaking, it will be necessary
to take a lai^e and comprehensive view of the inter-
course between the ports of Wales, Bristol, Glou-
cester, Worcester, and even Shrewsbury ; and also
of the numerous inland navigations connected with
the Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal ; and of
the intermediate courses of the river Thames, from
Lechlade, by Oxford, Wallingford, and Reading to
2x>ndofl. The various articles of produce and manu-
&Ctures in such a scope of country, which compre-
hend3 tW^ whole internaKtrade of the kingdom, are
more perhaps than I can immediately enumerate;
and indeed such an enumeration is almost needless
after what I have already given, when speaking of
the course of the canals.

The advantages to the inhabitants living on the
banks of the canals, and also on the banks of the rivers
into which canals are cut, are almost inconceivable.
The artist, the trader, the manufacturer, are all en-
* ticed as it were to industry, as new veins of trade- are
opened to their view, and by the constant, easy, cheap,
and certain carriage of their goods to a market, while
raw materials for working are brought back to their
doors by the same conveyance. The connection of
the river Thames with the Severn, by the means
of this canal, and also with the internal parts of
the kingdom, by the Oxford and Coventry canals,
which lead to Birmingham, and also the counties of
Stafford, York, Chester, and even to Westmorland,
forms a line of communication with the capital, of
the greatest importance^ and which cannot but ex«>

214 INLAND VAVJGATIONr«

cite a prodigious spirit of eoterpme among th^
citizens and traders.

On the 20th of April 1789, Mr. Clowes, tho
acting engineer, left to conduct the business under
Mr. Whitworth (who was then also employed ia
the Firth aiicl Clyde navigation in Scotland), passed
through the tunnel for the first time at Sappenon,
in a vessel of 30 tons burthen ; and the junction
was completed, and a vessel passed from the Severn
into the Thames for the first time on the iQth of
Noven^ber in the same year, in the presence of a
multitude of people who came froip all parrs of the
country, for 10 or 12 miles, on the occasion.

On the ipth of July 1788, when their Majesties
were at Cheltenham, they expressed a desire to view
the t\^nnel at Sapperton, in the praise of which fame
had been so lavish. Accordingly that day was. ap^
pointed, and his Majesty viewed t\ke entrance with
astonishment and delight, and bestowed the highest
praise on a work of such magnitude, expense, and
general utility, and expressed still greater satisfaction
on being informed that it had been- conducted and
con;p!eted by private gentlemen.

The length of the canal, I hare before observed,
is thirty miles sevep chains and a half, of which
from Sitroud to Sappertqn is se^en miles three fur*
longs, with a rise pf 24 i feet 3 inches { from. Sap-,
pertoq tunnel to Upper Siddingtqn, i^nd the branch
to Grencester, Q miles and. 8} chains, 2^ld is level ;
from Upper Siddington to Lechlade is 13 miles 4
furlongs and 9 chains^ an4 with a fall of 130 feet 6
inches.

xnlanb navigatiok« 2ls

Stroud Canal into thb Sevsan*

The plan for making the river of Stroudwatcr
navigable was first formed, and an act obtained for
carrying it into execution, in the yev 1730 ; but
though this undertaking was promoted with great
spirit, whether from the want of money, or some
misunderstanding among those engaged in it, or
on account of the supposed loss of water to the mil-
lers, it was never completed.

In the year 1755 a new survey and an estimate of
the expense of making the said river navigable were
ordered ; but another scheme was soon afterwards
proposed, by four private gentlemen to undertake the
work at their own expense, without locks (and con-
sequently without any loss of water to the millers),
by shifting the cargoes into boxes, and at every mill
into other boats by means of cranes. This proposal
was preferred and accepted; and in th(i year 1759
an act was obtained for executing it. But this scheme
likewise, which did not promise much benefit to
the country, in the end totally miscarried, and the
projectors were nearly ruined.

In the year ]774, when many navigations had
been successfully planned and completed in different
parts of the kingdom, the project was again revived
of effecting the navigation of the Stroudwater to the
Severn by a new canal. New sijrveys were in con-
sequence taken, plans drawn, and estimates made by
Thomas Yeoman, engineer,, F. R. S. and other sur-
veyors, after the manner of the most improved navi-
gations, whereby the old river is as much as possible
afoided, and the interference with the mills, which
has always been an obstacle, very much prevented,

2l6 INLAND NAVIGATION.

as the canal communicates with the river only in
three places.

When an act had been obtained which granted
sufficient powers to complete the work, a subscript
tion was opened for 20,000/. divided into 200 shares^
which was very soon filled. Articles were executed
stating the rights and powers of the proprietors ; calls
were made upon the subscribers agreeably to the
articles; lands were purchased, and materials pro-^
vided. Thus the navigation went on smoothly and
expeditiously ; but certain land-holders, through
whose lands the line of ihis navigation must pass,
obstinately opposed it. They were joined by a few
mill-holders upon the river. These persons adver-?
tised meetings, at which they opened a subscription,
and raised a fund professedly to be spent in opposi-
tion to the navigation ; in consequence of which an
action was laid by a mill-holder at Framiload, for
cutting through a small piece of ground, which it
was his interest to prevent. The court of Exchequer
was moved to stop proceedings on the canal, and the
question was brought to issue at Gloucester assizes,
when irif^as determined, that a^ canal navigation as
this was deemed (though falsely, as it communicates
with the river in three places) could not be. made
under the powers of the act of 1730, notwiihstahd-
ing the words of the act were, " That the under-
** takers are empowered to make as many iiew cuts
" as they may judge proper, and of what length and
" breadth they shall think convenient.'^

In consequence of this determination anpfber act
was applied for, and obtained in 1775, under which
the work is now finished, and will prove of veof
great advantage to the country.

IKLAKB NAVIGATION. ilj

The only double lock on this canal rises 14 feet,
and on one side of it is a bank 20 feet high from
the bed of the river 5 this bank was continually slid-
ing down when cut through. The committee made
several fruitless applications to different persons to
undertake the erecting of this lock ; at length An-
thony Keck, Esq. architect, of King's Stanley, who
wad. a person of great abilities, agreed to complete it
for a certain sum of money, the committee to deliver
the. bricks on the spot at per 1000. Models and
sections were made by the contractor ; with sills
and uprights framed, with braces and ties, and plates
to keep the bank from forcing against the walls of
the locks, all of which when completed were ap-
proved of by the committee. After being finished
nearly 12 months the walls began to bulge in, till no
barge could go through without danger ; the wall
being taken down, an action was commenced against
the said Anthony Keck, and at the trial at Gloucester
assizes the model was produced, and one of the
principal pieces of timber not being the exact size
exhibited in the model, the learned counsel (Bear-i
croft) for the committee,, often observed to the
jury — "Gentlemen, can a packthread string be as
strong as a cable rope ?" The contractor was cast,
with costs of suit, and was obliged to rebuild the
lock, which was immediately begun on a different
plan,^^iz. by turning about two brick cylinders of 4
feet 'diameter, against the bank, which had tlie desired
efreci^ and stands to this day.

Ou.t of 30 law-suits relative to this canal, no one
excited such general interest.
' The noted Mr. Edge was mason, and Mr. Booth
the bricklayer.

1 1 8 INLAND N AY 10 ATlOKi

The course of this canal begins at Bad Brooki at
the edge of the town of Stroud^ passed on to Cain's
Cross by Ebley^ and across the main road at Stone
Cross, and by Stone House, near Rycott Mill^ and
to Lockham bridge; then crosses the river near
Whitminster Mill, and goes into the Severn at Fra*
miload, being in length something more than eight
miles, and falls 802 feet.

It may not be improper to give a brief description
of the cranes and engines mtuie use of in the year
1759, by the four gentlemen who undertook to
carry on the navigation without locks.

These cranes were invented by Mr. Bridge of
Tewksbury, in the county of Gloucester. He con-
sidered the mill-ponds, where there are any, as so
many navigations already prepared. If they were
good, he did not make them worse.; but if they were
bad, he made them better, by widening and length-
ening them^ ia order that they might hold more
water.

A boat or barge being supposed to swim in this
pond or reservoir above the mill, the question is^
how shall the lading of. such a boat be got into the
stream below the mill, or vice versd^ without the in-
tervention of a lock or locks ?•— The method taken
by him is as follows 3

He cut a small canal from the water below the
mill, to approach towards the mill or pond above
tiie mill ; but kept the upper pond or canal, and the
lower canal entirely asunder, by means of a strong
bank pr wall of earth and clay, about 13 feet thick.
On this bank he erected a crane, or rather a dou«
ble crane, for it has two necks or levers ; and be
caused them to act singly or jointly at pleasure*

INLAND NAVIGATION. Hg

These necks or levers are made to turn to either the
upper; or lower canal, as they may be wanted ; and
when they both turn the same way, they generally
act as a balance or scales.

He next proceeded to construct a boat on the
lower canal, of the same dimensions exactly with that
in the upper ; and in both these boats he placed six,
seven, eight, or more frames, capable of holding
about one ton weight of goods each, and of being
lifted up by means of strong hooks, with all the
goods upon them.

Matters being thus settled, two men (the boat-
men) begin to work the cranes : and then the lever
of one crane takes a frame, with all the goods on
it, out of one boat, while the other lever is doing
the same by the other frame out of the other boat ;
and after the necks of the cranes are turned about,
they interchangeably deposit their contents; both
boats being by this means loaded and unloaded at
the same time.

Here we may observe there is no expense of locks,
no damages arising from floods, or freshes, or frosts,
or the concussion of the water ; nor is there any the
least waste of water; so that the smallest land drain,
if enough to supply a canal in a gentleman's garden,
is hereby rendered fully adequate to all the purposes
of an inland navigation ; and when any part of the
piachine happens to be out of order, it is as easily
repaired in winter as in summer. Not to mention,
that as the crane is a double one, one part may servo
(only using double the time), although the other
ahould be broken. Besides, since all the cranes on
the river are of a similar construction, materials foy
Repairing thep, such arf beaips, wheels, pulleys.

220 INLAND NAVIGATION.

chains, ropes^ &c. may always be kept in readiness ;
80 that the whole might be repaired in a few hours.
Moreover, as to the difficulties attending heights^
&lls, or precipices, it is no great difference in the
present case, whether the goods are to be lowered >
down or raised up four feet only, or 24. And as to
the important article of dispatch, it can be asserted
as a certain fact, which is every day confirmed by
experience, that both boats will interchange their
respective loadings in less than half an hour.

But to set this scheme in its true light, I have ex*
tracted from a long laboured performance in its
favour, and the answer to it, the following short un-
answerable evidence to prove its insufficiency.

Ii» m[« s.

The time in making a complete trip
and retrip with a 40 ton barge, supposed
to be in towing 8 22 50

The time to pass and repass 20 locks,
at two minutes each lock, proved to be
sufficient by observation as well as calcu-
lation > 1 20 e

9 42 50

The time to make a trip and retrip by
the 10 ton crane boat, all circumstances
being alike, will be found, towing the
same as before 8 22 50

The time to pass and repass at the 20
mills or falls, allowing half an hour at
each crane up and down, will be 20

28 22 50

INLAND NAVIGATION. 221

DifFcience of time is 19 hours almost out of 28

hours.

To compare the expense, suppose the
towifig labour comes to Is. 6d. a day per
man for 12 hours work, the expense of
two men for 9 hours 40 minutes 50 se-
conds, in majcing a trip and retrip in the
40 ton barge, only ^0 2 4

The ten ton boat, to make the same
trip and retrip, will require, on account
of the working the cranes, two men's la-
bour for 28 hours 22 minutes 50 seconds,
which comes to Js. id. per trip and retrip,
and according to the same rate 40 tons for
the labour of freight only come to • • . • 1 8 4

The difference, being an extra charge by the
crane or new scheme navigation for 40 tons freight
in every complete voyage up and down 1 /• 6s. in
1 /. 8^. 4d.

From this calculation it plainly appears, that the
new scheme has a disadvantage of nearly 1115/. per
cent, and the same disadvantage will prpportionably
arise on any other extent of navigation. Hence it is
evident, that the judgment of the legislature was
very right in vesting as it did all the advantage of an
invention, which might not seem to them to carry
that same prospect of utility, as it did to the ma^-
chine proprietors of the Stroud navigation.

Nov. 1802. Remarks on $he Progress of Canals.

The Stroudwater canal requires good management; the last
dividend was about 6/. per share ; the price about 25/.

121 rNlAND KAn0AtI0R'«

Intended Canal from Monkbt Island T(J

Reading.
In 1754 a proposal was made for opening a navH
gation between. London and Bristol, by the way of
HuDgerford, Marlborough, Calne, Chippenham, and
another by the way of Oxford^ Lechdalp, Cricklade,
Malmsbury, and Chippenham. It was projected to
join the Severn, Trent, and Humber, by the means
of the two rivulets Penk and Stour, which would give
the advantage of water-carriage to seventy-one cities
and market towns.

A canal 50 feet wide at top, 30 at bottom, and
four feet deep, might be made at the rate of 300 /.
per mile, by employing the soldiery in the worky
with an additional SJ. a day, and allowing 700 /. a
mile for the purchase of grounds, building locks and
bridges, and making reservoirs. The amount of the
whole expense would be about 1000 1, a mile * and
consequently 300,000 /. would complete a navigable
canal 300 miles in length, which is vastly more than
necessary for the purposes required.

The proposer of the above scheme confesses him-
self no engineer (which is very obtious he is riot) ^
but says he wis led into this train of reflection by a
journey he made in the year before (in 1753) through
Flanders, where he saw 7000 Austrian soldiers at
work on the canals between Ghent and Ostend, to'
make a watery highway (as he terms it). The ex-
pense of this, and the erection of locks at Sas- van-
Ghent, could not amount to less than 200,000/.
which was to be raised by a land-tax laid on by the
assembly of the estates of Brabant, at Brussels. This
vast expense was voluntarily incurred only to niake a

iHLAND NATIGATIOK* ^29

commercial highway for about 40 miles in lengths
Of such importance to commerce do that prudent
and wise people consider an easy communication be-
tween city and city to be. So far my author.

The advantages arising from canal navigations to
manufactures, commerce, and agriculture, above
those of navigable rivers, are universally acknow-
ledged. There have been many courses for navi-
gable canals pointed out in this kingdom, that are
both practicable and eligible ; some of which have
been carried into execution with honour and profit to
the proprietors, and credit to the engineers and con-
ductors, as has already been shewn ; but there are
none from which greater benefits and advantages
would arise to the public, and to the counties through
which they pass, than a cut from Monkey Island,
in the river Thames, near Maidenhead to Sunning
near Reading, in the county of Berks (though this
is in fact only part of a larger design, which I shall
hereafter mention) ; for by means of such a canal the
price of provisions would be greatly lessened in Lon-
don, and the country would be supplied with coals
at a much cheaper rate. In order to shew the par-
ticular advantage of this intended navigation to Read-
ing, the distance is only 15J miles, and by another
route only 14 J miles, but by the river it is above
twice that distance.

The expense of taking i barge of 120 tons burthen
from Monkey Island to Reading, has been proved,
before a committee of the House of Commons, to be
5o/. and the passage cannot be performed in less than
three days, and often three weeks, and it has even
been known to have been two months ; whereas, by
a canal, it may be performed at all seasons of the

224 . INLAKD NAVTGATIOir.

year, excepting a very hard frost, in six bours^ and
at the expense of only 4 h 7s. supposing the ton*
jiage to be laid at iJ. per ton per mile, as is pro-
posed.

By the river, the distance can never be shortened,
nor can the labour of- passing against the stream be
avoided* It is confessed likewise, that no method
can be discovered to make the river navigations pas-
sable in time of floods, which in most years continue
for several months during the winten

As no private property should be allowed in the
canal (the money being intended to be raised by an-
nuities)^ it is presumed the proposers will have every
inducement to make ample satisfaction for injuries to
individuals, nor is it possible they can have any mo-
tive to the contrary.

No private person can receive any benefit that is
not common to the public ; therefore the public only
are interested in this useful design, as this canal is
intended to be a free navigation after the tolls have
paid ofF the expenses of rnaking it, and a suf-
ficient fund has been accumulated to keep it in
repair, which it is apprehended will be in less than
40 jears.

Notwithstanding these arguments are nqt to be
confuted, yet some individuals, pretending their pri-
vate property would be injured, the country drowned,
and raising many other weak and absurd objections,
have found means (in a great assembly) to have this
useful scheme rejected^ But it cannot die ; for its
merits must certainly one day or other revive it. I
hope my readers will not be offended at my informing
them of what may be done, as well as what has been
done, with respect to the river Thames ; for although

IKLAND NAVIGATION. 225

some of these plans hare not yet been executed^ yet
when the different canals in the interior parts of the
country are completed^ and the benefits and advan-
tastes derived from a communication b^etween those
great sea-ports Bristol^ Liverpool, and Hull, which
are happily now united by an inland navigation,
shall have become generally known, it is very im-
probable that the city of London, the first city in
the world for conunerce, will tamely lie idle, and
not take advantage of the opportunity to come in
for her share. Indeed it is an unpardonable fault
somewhere, that London did not take the lead, and
set the example in a work of such great national,
importance, and not suffer a few interested indivi-
duals to oppose a scheme of such magnitude, but
make a vigorous application to parliament, which no
doubt will view the advantages of the plan in their
proper light, and not suffer the public good to be
obstructed by private individuals, but rather take
example by the wise regulations of China, where
not even the emperor's gardens or pleasure grounds
are sacred from a public canal.

Intended Canal phom Reading to Isleworth.

At a general meeting holden at the Town-hall at
Reading, on Tuesday the Qth of October 1770, it
was agreed,* that a canal should be cut from Sunning
to Monkey Island, and that no person whatever
should be injured thereby. It was also agreed, that
the river Thames from Sunning to Boulter's Lock
should be amended at the expense of the canal, with-
out any other toll being taken upon the river than
what is now taken. At another meeting at Reading
it was resolved, not to come to Monkey Island.; but

226 INtAKD NAVIGATION-

to go into the Thames at Boulter's Lock^ which
would have been equally convenient for the conti-
nuation line to Isle^orth.

At the same timf 'it was agreed, that the money
should be raised by life annuities ; and when the
tolls collected should have paid the expenses of
cutting the canal and repairing the river, and when
a sufficient sum should be accumulated for the per-
petual repair thereof, that then the navigation for
ever after should remain a free navigation.

And at another meeting held on the 7 th of No-
vember 1771, at Reading, it was further agreed,
that the said canal be of such dimensions as to
admit the largest barges now navigating the river
Thames to Reading, to pass and repass in every
part.

When the design of this canal was laid before the
city of London, a committee was appointed to exa-
mine and enquire into the utility of such a measure,
and every proper step has been since taken to extend
it. Plans have been made, and estimates prepared,
both for making a canal from Isleworth to Monkey
Island, and also for repairing the river from Monkey
Island to Mortlake, in the county of Surry ; so that
the application of the commissioners for repairing the
river by an additional duty on coals, seems to be
precluded, because the river will.be repaired without
any expense to them, and without any additional toll
upon the river ; the consequences of which will be,
that all the trade upwards will pass on the canal, be-
cause that being still water, and the distance short-
ened, the expense and labour will be greatly reduced ;
and most of the trade downwards (except in time of
floods)' will be by the river, because the barges and

INLAKB NIVIOATION. 227

boats will fall down the stream without labour, and
save the expense of returning by the canal. In con-
sequence of the increase of navigation, the rivtr will
have a much greater trade downwards than ever it
had before, and the canal will be less obstructed by
vessels returning to London ; and it being intended
to be of such dimensions as to receive the largest
barges navigating the Thames westward, it is sup-
posed it will not be possible for any person whatever
to be injured by it. For by Mr. Brindley's first re-
port it appears, that the expense of taking up a barge
of 100 or 120 tons from Isleworth to Sunning, and
back again by the river, is 80 /. and sometimes more,
which by the canal may be done for l6 /. so that there
will be a saving in expense of 64 /. out of 80 /. with-
out noticing the great difference in time *, or damage
of goods, and disappointments by long droughts in
summer, and floods in winter, incidental to all river
navigations.

From what has been said it will appear, that the
most expeditious passage for all vessels going up-
wards to Henley and Marlow, would be to pass the
canal to Sunning (which may be done in one day
with the largest barges), and fall down the river to
Henley and Marlow, without labouring against the
stream ; and as a lock would be placed below Mon-
key Island, for the better crossing the canal, which
will make level water, and consequently an easy
passage up to Maidenhead and Boulter's Lock.

* For by the canal the voyage may be made in 15 hoare,
whereas by the riTer they are three weeks in going up, 1^4
nearly as long in coming down*

a 2

228 INLAND NA\*ICATI6N,

A branch of the canal is intended to fall into the
river about Windsor-bridge, for all vessels going from
London to Windsor, Datchct, Old Windsor, &c, ;
and a branch also is to be cut from West Bclfont to
Staines, Laleham, Chertsey, Weybridge, the Guild-
fond navigation, Sheperton, Sunbury, &c.

As for the more easy passage from London to
Brentford, Isleworth, Richmond, Twickenham, and
Kingston, a good towing-bank will be brought down
as far as Mortlake ; and a dam will be made with
cistern -locks, to keep the banks always full to high-
water mark, which will preserve level water up to
Teddington. By this means most vessels will be able
to reach Mortlake in one tide from London, and will
be sure of an easy passage and level water into the
canal ; an improvement which will make the whole
country above it the most delightful spot in Europe.

Any person, by inspection of the country and
course of the river Thames, will discover at first sight
the great utility of this undertaking ; for, by carry-
ing the eye in a straight line from Maidenhead to
Isleworth, it will be perceived that the navigation
will be shortened two parts in three.

To give the profile or section of the river (which
I have now before me) from Mortlake to Boultef s
Lock, near Maidenhead, with all the deeps and shal-
lows, would be too tedious, and of little utility here. .
But the different falls or descents of its surface at
Boulter's Lock may be useful and worthy notice.
The water above the lock is above five feet deep ;
but below, the vast force of the water coming down
from such an unmechanical lock, has worked or dug
a hole of 20 feet perpendicular depth, and above 100

INLiNB NAVIGATIOX. 22^

feet in length ; beyond which rises a hill thrown up
by the great force of the current, where the bed of
the river has little more than three feet depth of

water.

The whole fall from Boulter's Lock to Mortlake
is 75 feet 7 inches, and the* distance is 41 miles 1
furlong. This survey and measurement was taken
for and by the order of the city of London, in the
most accurate manner, to shew the impossibility of
making a good navigation in the bed of the river, or
any other where the fall is so great, as has been proved
by sad experience in many instances. It may not
perhaps be foreign to this, business, or amiss at this
place, to mention a few among several.

The river Avon, from Salisbury to Christchurch,
was made navigable, and was opened but a very short
time before it was entirely destroyed by the floods,
and it has not yet been thought worth while to repair
it. There is some intention, I am informed, to make
a canal parallel with it. The river Stour, from
Stourbridge to the Severn, has undergone the same
fate. The navigations of the rivers Mersey and Ir-
well have had most of their works destroyed by the
rapidity of the floods. And the navigation of the
river Calder in Yorkshire, about the year 1774> was
very greatly damaged, and rendered impassable for
above twelve months, and then repaired at a very
great expense ; but it and all others still remain e^-*
posed to the same danger.

230 inland navigation.

Intended Canal from London to Waltham

Abbey.

Before I quit the metropolis of the British Empire,
I will give some short account of an intended navi-
gable canal from Waltham Abbey, in the county of
Essex, into a large basin, to be cut in Moorfields,
London — 2l most noble improvement, projected and
promoted by Mr. James Sharp, for the advantage
and ornament of the city of London.

Mr. Sharp, having conceived the idea of a grand
canal of communication between London and the ad-
jacent country^ made choice of the area of Moor-
iields, as the extreme point to which it might be
most commodiously directed. With this view, about
the year 1772, he caused the level to be taken from
the quarters of Moorfields, in order to try where it
would run into the river Lee, when, to his surprise,
he found it extend no less than ]3\ miles, and to
approach so near to Waltham Abbey as to make that
place the other extreme point from, whence it might
proceed. In the course of this survey it was observed,
that such a canal would in its progress pass through
a very pleasant part of the country, through every
capital village in the course of its direction, and
through inclosures, the richest and most delightftil
rural prospects that can be conceived,

Mr. Sharp employed the ingenious Mr. Robert
Whitworth to take the survey, who was draughtsman
to the late celebrated Mr. Brindley, and who assisted
in projecting most of his magnificent works.

This gentleman, upon trial, found the project of
Mr. Sharp not only practicable, but much more easy
to be carried into e;!(ecurion than in most countries

INLANB NlVIGATlOiT. 231

through which navigable. rivers have been made;
and according to his calculation^ a canal 6o feet wide
at the surface, 41 feet deep, and tenninating in a
basin 400 feet long, and 200 feet broad, in Moor*
fields, might have been con\pleted from Walthara
Abbey, for the sumpf 53,495/. a sum inconsi<ler-
able in comparison to the advantages that would ac-
crue from it to the city of London, but more parti-
cularly to the country through which it was intended
to pass, every foot of which adjoining to its banks
would be greatly increased in value.

Upon this representation of the facility of carr}'ing
this design into execution, Mr. Sharp thought pro-
per to proceed, and caused a plan to be prepared and
laid before the common council, in order to take the
sense of that body in a matter that so highly con-
cerned the city of London. It was some time before
the plan could be completed ; but it was no sooner
seen than approved, and ^ petition was presented to
parliament, for leave to bring in ^ bill to enable the
city to carry it into execution.

Previous to this presentation Mr, Whirworth was
desired to consider of the manner of conducting the
canal, and the applicAtipn of it to the most beneficial
purposes, as well with respect to health 4Qd ornament
as utility.

He was given to understand, that the quarters of
Mobrfields were set apart as a pleasure-ground for the
citizens of London to walk in for the benefit of the
air ; he therefore very judiciously contrived, not only
to secure to them that privilege, but to heighten the
pleasure of the enjoyment ; he proposed to surrwnd
the basin with a spacious gravel walk, by which any
liumber of persons might amuse themselves by the

232 IKLANP KAVIGATIOtf.

sides of the silvery surface, which no doubt would
have been filled with vessels of various construction,
as none were to be admitted but boats for pleasure,
except only those for carrpng light goods and passen-
gers to and from the country. For besides the
smaller basin in Moorfields^ which was intended
chiefly for pleasure, Mr. Whitworth had projected
one of a more ample construction, of a circular form,
500 feet in diameter, to be laid out between the field
near Holywell Mount and the Tabernacle, with
wharfs extending 80 feet every way from the water's
edge, skirted round with buildings for mercantile
purposes, which would have amazingly increased the
trade of the city, and have produced many great ad-
vantages, some of which are as follows.

Health is considered as the first and greatest ad-
vantage ; and that would be promoted in an eminent
degree by a constant circulation of free air, occa-
sioned by the passing and repassing of vessels for
pleasure and business upon a clear stream, and by
constant communication with the country.

Next to health the advantage of supplying the city
more copiously with provisions, the most likely means
to reduce the price. Milk in particular, which is
now of a very bad quality, owing to the rank food
of the cows in the suburbs, would then have been
brought twice a day, by water, from cows fed in
meadow-lands with wholesome grass, instead of
grains and cabbage-leaves.

Butchers* meat, in like manner, would have been
brought from pli^ces remote from town, where catde
would have been slaughtered without being heated
with over-driving, and consequently fitter to be
preserved in salt*

INI^Ayp KAVIOATIOIf. 23S

Com, malt, und fiovur^ at a 3mall expense, would
have 9p^4ily been bropgbt from Ware, Hertford,
Stortford, and other toww and Tillages at a greater
distance, without being loaded with the expense of
double carriage ; and coals, and other heavy articles,
would have been returned nearly aa cheap a$ those
sold in London.

Hay, straw, coals, brick, chalk, lime, but more
particularly timber, would have been capital articles
of traffic on this canal.

The number of horses would be greatly diminished,
in proportion as the quantity of those heavy goods
brought by water should be increased ; so that
the saving of provender would be a considerable
object.

The conveyance of passengers by water, in ressels
properly furnished, from one end of the canal to the
other, at the small fare of 3d. would not only be of
great convenience to passengers in general, but more
particularly to those who might be inclined to collect
and bring to market the small articles of poultry, but^^'
ter, eggs, &c. A large reservoir of water would be
always ready for extinguishing fires in every part of
the city. By means of channels or pipes of com*
munication, the filth of the city might all have
been carried off from the common sewers, at times
when abundance of rain might make water plenty.
These, and many other advantages, would have
accrued to the city of London from the completion
Df this plan.

To the proprietors of land, and to the inhabi-
tants at a distance, the advantages would have been
proportionably great. Relds would have been con-
verted into gardens, and wastes into fertile fklds, by

234 INLAND NAVIGATION.

means of the plentiful supply of manure, and the
penury of the poor country labourer3 relieved by
the profusion of the city,

Leeds to Selbt.

The first and most obvious advantage of a canal is,
that its navigation is equal and regular ; for it is not
so certain that a waggoner arrives at his inn at a stated
hour, as that a vessel floating on a canal will arrive
at a stated time at its place of destination. The time
will always be certain, and, if the canal be properly
formed, always be less than that required to navigate
a river. The saving in point of time will be of the
utmost importance to trade; and as the business
which requires 10 days in performing upon the river
Air, will more frequently be done upon the canal in
as many hours, if the difference of freight bear any
kind of proportion to the difference in the time, the
saving in that article also will be very great.

An artificial cut will be drawn with fewer curves,
and will have no stream either way to oppose the
vessels. By shortening the carriage, a valuable im-
provement will be made ; and such is the improve-
ment which the canal now projected will produce,
by which, although it is only 23 miles in lengthy the
passage from Leeds to Hull will become six miles
shorter, and the passage from Leeds to Selby, Tad-
caster, York, &c. 30 miles shorter than it now is.

In the reign of King William IIL when trade in
this part of the country was far below. its present state,
it was thought proper to facilitate, communication by
water-carriage ; and an act of parliament was passed^
by which certain lock-dues, or rates of tonnage, upon
the rivers Air and Caldeo ^'cre granted for the en^

•If^LANiy NAVIGATION. 23^5

couragement of those who had undertaken to make
and keep them navigable^ amounting to no less than .
1 6 s. per ton from the first of October to the first of
May, and }Os. per ton from the firsf of May to the
first of October : rates which, if they were now to
be exacted, would, even without. the addition of
freight, often exceed the price of land-carriage, and
in many cases exceed the original value of the goods
transported, and in a great measure put an entire
stagnation to trade itself: yet these rates are now
legal, and any abatement must be considered a
favour.

By the length of passage, they may evidently be
carried at a cheaper rate ; and as water-carriage is
preferred to land-carriage merely for its cheapness,
the same reason makes one mode of water-carriage
preferable to the other*.

To mention the increase of trade in general terms,
is to convey no distinct or accurate idea ; it is neces*
sary therefore to state particularly, that, by the yearly
accounts of- the number of woollen cloths made in
the West Riding of the county of York, and given
into the justices of the Easter session 1772, it ap-
pears there were made, the preceding year, 1 12,370
pieces of broad cloth, measuring 3,223,9 13 J- yards,
and 95,539 pieces of narrow cloth, measuring
2,377,517^ yards, amounting in value, reckoning
the broads at 5s. a yard, and the nairows at 4s. to
the sum of 1,281,481 /. \3s. besides which it isap*
prehended the stuff-trade carried on in Yorkshire, and
the cloth and woollen trade carried on in Lancashire,
of which no certain account can be obtained, are of
much greater value than the cloth made in the
West Riding.

236 IKJ4ANB FAViaATIOV.

Cloth, or the mMerials for cloth, are not the only
things in such a country that require easy and expe*
ditious transportation. Timber, stone, coals, Htpe,
and provisions, whatever is necessary to the support
or accommodation of great numbers of wealthy and
diligent inhabitants, whom successful trade always
brings together, and whatever is supplied by an ex-
tensive country, various in its products, which may
be useful to other parts of the kingdom, are always
passing and repassing in this populous and busy pror
vince, in which a capital of many millions is con-
stantly employed : and that all those would pass and
repass with more certainty, and at a less price, by
the canal now proposed, than by that now in use, is
self-evident ; notwithstanding which, the opposition
it has met with from those interested in the Air and
Calder navigations lr.s defeated the project, and ren-
dered a laudable attempt to serve the public, after a
very considerable expense, of no effect.

The proposed route of this canal at once proves its
utility. It was intended that it should communicate
in the township of Holbeck with the canal now mak-
ing from Lrceds to Liverpool, pass from Holbeck by
Leeds to Hunslet, and by Thwait Mill, thence cross
the river Air near the fire-engines, not far from
Newton, and proceed by Fairburn, with a tunnel
through the hill near Burton Salmon, by Hilham
and Hambleton, near Thorp-hall and Thorp-dam
to Selby, into the river Ouse, arid immediately down
to Hull.

A short cut has been made from Selby into the

Air and Calder navigation, near Haddlesey, by which

there is an easy conveyance to Leeds ; and it is

' hoped most or all the advantages expected from

INLAKD NAVIOATIOX* 237

the before-mentioned canal are now enjoyed by the
public, and the old adventurers in the river navi-
gation are certainly not injured^ but benefited.

HUDBBJISFIELB CaKAL.

Before I begin to describe the Leeds canal, it will
be proper to take notice of a canal intended to go
from Huddersfield in Yorkshire, to Cooper's Bridge
over the river Caldcr, where the roads go off to Leeds
and Wakefield.

This canal is to begin at King's Mill near the
town of Huddersiield, and pass Bau'^s Lane and
TownsweU's Spring, crossing the high road to Ha*
lifax, and Houghditch and Black-house Brook near
Deighton, upon the edge of Ladgrave Wood, to
Cooper's Bridge. The length is near eight miles,
and the fall is 56 feet 10 inches, by nine locks^
equally divided for the fall. This canal was first
surveyed in 1/66, and again in 1773, by Mr. Luke
Holt ; and in 1774, an act passed to enable Sir John
Ramsden, baronet (who is the sole proprietor of the
town of Huddersfield), to complete it. By its junc-
tion with the river Calder at Cooper's bridge, it
will open a communication with the great trading
towns of Halifax, Wakefield, Leeds, York, and Hull. ,
Stones, slates, flags, lime, limcrstone, or coals, carried
on this canal, to pay Sd. per ton, merchandise Is. 6Ji
per ton, and no toll to be taken for dung or manure.

There is a clause in this act, that the clear profits
to be received from this navigation shall never exceed
six per cent, upon such monies as shall be actually
laid out in making, maintaining, &c.

N. B. This canal has been made and completed
some years.

238 IKLAND KATtGATIOir*

Leeds and Liverpooi, Canal.

A navigation between the east and west seas^ by
the rivers Air and Ribble, was for nuny years deemed
a practicable and desirable work by several gentler-
men of speculation and public spirit ; and some en*
deavours were used by them, at several periods,
though without effect, to draw the public attention
towards it. While this great design was in coAtem-
plation, the Duke of Bridgewater formed his plan of
a navigable canal from Worsley Mill to Manchester;
which he soon after executed with great ability and
success. Works of genius generally draw the atten-
tion of men of genius : Mr. Longbotham, therefore,
haying viewed and examined the route of this canal,
and the manner of carrying it into execution, in
1767 conceived the noble design of this canal from
Leeds to Liverpool ; and to be thoroughly satisfied
whether it was practicable or not, he took an actual
survey of all the intermediate country between those
two extremities, and produced a plan, with an esti-
mate of the expense of executing it, at several pub-
lic meetings, which were called at sundry times and
places in the counties of York and Lancaster. At
several of these meetings, composed of the gentle-
men and land-owners lying near the canal, it was
unanimously resolved, that the scheme was practi-
cable, and, if executed, would be of great service to
the country : and to put the question beyond a doubt
whether it was practicable or not, it was agreed to
call on Mr. Brindley to take a survey ; a gentleman
whose surprising success in executing works of this
kind, has justly entitled him to the highest credit
^nd' esteem.

INLAKB NAVIGATION* 230

Mr. Brindley, after surveying by himself and his
agent the whol^ course as laid down by Mr. Long-
botham, reported to two numerous meetings of gen-
tlemen, merchajxts^ and manufacturers, held at Brad*
ford the 3th, and at Liverpool the gth of December
1768, that it was very practicable, and might be
executed at an expense which he produced in a par-
ticular detail of all the works, and estimates of them,
which is too long to particularise here, but of which
the following is a summary account :

Mr. Brindley estimates the whole ex-

V pense of making the proposed canal from

liCeds to Liverpool, being 108 J- miles,

upon a plan of 42 feet wide at top, and

6 feet deep, at £^^^,111

\ •

The interest of which, at 5 per cent.
per annum, will amount to near 13,000

The expenses of keeping it in repair,
the salaries of officers, losses, and un-
foreseen accidents, he estimates at .... 4,000

— — ■

Making together, per annum ^ 17,000

The tonnage will at least make as follows :
Lime-stone, lime, slate, flags, bricks,
and free-stone, at a halfpenny per ton

per mile ^8,500

Coals at one penny per ton per mile 3,500

Lead, iron, deals, timber, hemp, flax,
Hamburgh yarn, woollen, linen, and
cutlery goods of all kinds, groceries,

dying wares, salt, mahogany, wine, Burs-

■ ■ ; ■'

Carried over. . c . ^ 12,000.

240 INLAND UkXtGkTlOTi.

Brought over . . . . ^ 12,00O
lem wares, spirituous liquors, corn, but-
ter, cheese, Irish yarn, alum, &c, &c.
at one halfpenny per ton per mile. . . . 8,000

Total ^ 20,000

These are the calculations on which this under-
taking is founded ; it is now to be considered, whe-
ther the advantages which may probably arise from
this canal will equal the expense of making it.

First, Those which will accrue to the particular
country through which the canal passes.

Secondly, Those which will accrue to the king-
dom in general.

And first, the advantages which will accrue to the
particular country are :

1. It will make the mutual exchange of the native
productions and commodities of one part of that
country for those of another, easy, expeditious, and
cheap.

2. It will greatly promote and increase the trades
and manufactures carried on in it.

3. It will improve the lands, and increase popu-
lation.

4. It will save an enormous expense of land-
carriage.

Whoever takes only a superficial view of the in-
termediate country bet;wecn Leeds and Liverpool,
will find that some parts of it abound with- the best
coal, but are destitute of lime-stone ; while in other
parts he will find ijiexhaustible rocks of the best
Ume-stone> but a total want of coals. In others be
wiU find fine slate, flags, and fire-stone lying useless

INLAKB NAVIGATION. 241

snO neglected, and of no kind of value, on account
of the prodigious expense of land- carriage, although
they are much wanted on the whole course of the
t:anal. In some parts there is great plenty of timber
fit for ship building, ' and great quantities of wood
proper for common buildings, and making tools and
utensils in husbandry, as also for making charcoal
cmd other puposes ; while in others scarcely a single
tree, unless planted for ornament, is to be s^en for
many successive miles.

In a great part of Craven and •Lancashire, the
whole country, for many miles together, consists
almost solely of pasture, and a very small portion of
meadow-land, and is employed in raising and feed-
ing cattle only ; insomuch that the landlords gene-
rally restrain their tenants and servants from using
the plough. Their rorn for bread, and every other
use, they are forced to get at a great expense by
la-nd-carriage.

From this cursory and imperfect sketch of the
country it is visible, at the first glance, what general
and extensive advantages will accrue to the whole
adjoining country front this caual ; which will, as it
were. Connect the whofe, -and make make every part
partake, at ati easy expense, of the natural and
acquired advantages and conveniences of the rest.

Coals will be carried to bum theiime-stone through-
out Cfav^en ; and the lime- stone will also be carried
from thence, and coal brought from the coal- works
adjoining to the canal.

The slate> flags, and free-stone that now lie buried
and useless, will be brought to light) and not only
supply those parts of the country where they are
wanted, but will also be carried coastwise upon both

1242 , INLAND KAVIQATXON*

the east and west seas, even as far as London, aa thejr
are liow brought from near Leeds and Halifax by
water carriage.

Timber for building ships and houses, and for
various uses in husbandry, and in several branches
of manufactures produced by those parts where it
abounds, would plentifully supply the wants of other
parts where it is both scarce and dear ; and Craven,
and the adjacent parts, where little or no corn is
grown, but where great quantities are and must be
consumed, will be eased of the excessive burden of
land carriage, and will be constantly and plentifully
supplied with that necessary commodity, by this
water carriage, from the market at Leeds on the one
hand, and from what is called the file country in
Lancashire on the other.

These are a part, and but a small part, of the very
great and numerous benefits wbich will arise to the
whole intermediate country, by the mutual exchanges
of the native productions and commodities of one
part for those of another.

2. It will contribute very much to promote and
increase trade and manufactures.

We know from constant experience, that nothing
contributes more to the encouragement of trade and
manufactures, than the facility of conducting them,
procuring the proper materials for them, carrpng
the goods manufactured to a market, and obtaining
a certain and uniform subsistence for the manufac-
turers.

Now all these advantages will be derived from
this canal. A constant, risady, cheap, and certain
conveyance of every species of goods from one place
to another will render the management of trade easy.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 243

and will also supply the manufacturers with variety
of materials ; as Irish, yarn and wool, cotton, indigo,
dying goods, and other materials, and at the same
time 'will provide a constant and uniform plenty of
subsistence, as the market will be as it were at their
own door : corn, potatoes, garden-stuff, and other
provisions, will be continually passing and repassing
on the canal as markets fluctuate, and the scarcity of
one place or market be supplied by the superfluity of
another.

3. It will greatly improve the lands, and increase
the population of the country.

Lime, when used with judgment, is one of the
best manures for land, and by means of this canal
may be had in great plenty, and very cheap, from
one end of the canal 4o the other, and for six milts
or more on each side of it, to the great improvement
of this large tract of country ; in several parts of
which little lime can be had. Besides this, marie
and other manure, particularly foul salt, may also
be had by means of this canal, in many parts of this
country, which now cannot procure them. And that
population will be increased, is evident from what
has been said before ; for where manufactures are
encouraged, where there is plenty of work, and
plenty of wholesome provisions, population always
must and will increase.

4. It will save an immense expense in land car-
riage.

This will appear evident, if the present price of
land carriage be compared with the price proposed to
be taken for the water carriage. The price of land
carriage is at present on an average is. per ton per
mile. The price proposed to be taken by watir, for

244 INLAND NATIGATION.

tonnage^ height, and all incidental expenses, is, for
merchandise, 2d. per ton per mile ; for coals, J \d.
per ton per mile; for lime-stone, lime, slate, &c.
one penny per ton per mile, being only one-twelfth
of land carriage. Thus, upon a medium, at least
seven parts in eight of the land carriage will be saved
to the public.

To know how much this saving may amount, it is
not easy to say with any degree of certainty ; but if
the profits to arise from the navigation is, as before
mentioned, truly calculated, and by those who know
the country best it is deemed to be rather below than
above the truth, this saving yi'ill amount to above
200;000/. a year.

Besides these advantages, there is another arising
from time, or from the certainty and expedition of
this mode of conveying goods and merchandises from
one place to another ; an advantage well understood
by all traders and manufacturers. For let us suppose
a proper number of deck boats, built after the man-
ner of the Duke of Bridgwater's, divided into three
or four convenient rooms for passengers and mer-
chandise, of which one should set out from Leeds,
and another from Liverpool, every morning at a cer-
tain stated hour, and making short stays in their
passage at certain stated times and places to take in
and discharge goods and passengers, these great towns,
and the whole intermediate country, would thus have
a constant, safe, cheap, and commodious convey-
ance of goods and passengers from place to place ;
and the whole passage from Leeds to Liverpool, and
Z'ice versa, might be completed in three days.

Bat advantages no less great, and by far more ex-
tensive, will arise to the trade and manufactures of

INLAND NAVIGATION. 045

this kingdom^ by opening this short, expeditious,
and safe communication between the east and west:
seas. The whole interaiediate country between
Leeds and Liverpool, and for a large extent on each
side the canal, will be supplied with wool, woollen
yarn, corn and provisions, hides, tallow, &c. from-
Ireland, and also the produce of America, and what-
ever else is imported at Liverpool ; and the same
countries will also be supplied with linen, linen yarn,
tin plates, deal, timber, iron, boards, hemp, flax,
Russia linen, potash, and whatever else is imported
from the east country at the port of Hull, and in
like manner all our exports would be encouraged'and .
benefited. And this may seem to affect this country
in particular, by promoting its manufactures and
improving its lands ; yet the whole kingdom will
share in this improvement, and the encouragement
of these manufactures, which annually bring in not
less than 2,000,000/. sterling; besides the advan-
tage of this internal navigation from east to west,
without which vessels would be obliged to go round
the island two thousand miles or more. In time of
war,' likewise, this communication will be a prodi-
gious advantage to the whole trading interest. Upon
the whole, the many advantages arising from this
navigation from sea to sea are so many^ and so various,
and of such prodigious value to the kingdom in
general, as well as to these counties in particular,
that it is difficult, if at all possible, to form a just
idea of them.

The small objections made to this canal prove its
utility, and were so futile as to need no reply. The
ftct was obtained without opposition.

246 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Parliament granted the act for carrying the canal
into execution in the beginning of the year 1770,
and it was begun the latter end of that year ; and
such was the expedition made in the work, that, at
a meeting held at Liverpool by the proprietors, the
27th of September 1771, an account was delivered
in by the engineer, that there were upwards of 20
miles of it not only cut, but also nearly finished.

In' order to make the expense, and raising the
money as easy as possible, it was agreed to petition
the legislature to have the powers vested in a com-
pany,, and to divide the capital into 2600 shares of
100/. each, and to bear an interest of 5/. per cent,
to be regularly paid on a stated day in every year,
till the work should be completed ; when the full
profits were to be equally divided annually, in pro-
portion to the shares of which each person was pos-
sessed. And that each subscriber should have a vote
upon all occasions by himself or proxy, for every
share ; and that no person was to be allowed to hold
more than 100 shares, which would be a security
against any partial or injurious influence in the exe-
cution of the works, or management of the com-
pany's affairs when completed.

I shall now proceed to describe the course of this
canal, its length, rise, and fall.

This canal begins out of the river Mersey, at low
water, just at the lower extremity of the town of
Liverpool, by Bank-hall, Bootle, Litherland, and
makes almost a half circle, and goes over the river
Alt to Melling, by Maghul, and Aughton and Mill-
house ; it then takes a large half circle round the
town of Ormskirk, and crosses Toad- brook near
Newbrough, which it passes, and crosses also the

INLAND NAVIGATION. 247

river Douglas (which runs to Wigan), proceeds by
Bisburn-hall and Monk-bouse^ and crosses the river
Yarrow at the town of Ecclestone. It then goes on
by Shaw-green, Colebrook, and Shaw-mill to Ley-
land^ over the brook near Bamber-bridge, and soon
after crosses the Lancaster canal near Houghton*
tower and Fleetwood-hall, over the river Darwent
by Showley and Dewhurst, crosses the river Calder
near Whaley, by Padiham and Fendle-hall, and again
crosses a part of the river near the town of Coin to
Foulridge, where a bason is cut to supply the canal,
of which it is the head. The canal here begins to
hll to Leeds^ and goes from Foulridge by Salterford>
EastMarton, and crosses the river Air near Gargrave,
by Thorlby, Sturton, and the town of Skipton, by
Bradley, Kildwick, Silsden, near the town of Keigh-
ley and by Bingley ; a little below which it again
crosses the river Air, passes Shipley, and takes
a semicircle round Idle, near Appertin-bridge, Hors-
forth, Kirkstall-abbey, by Burley and Hoi beck, to
the town of Leeds, making in the whole a course of
117 miles, with 838 feet fall, viz. From the sum-
mit near Coin to Leeds, 45 miles; fall, 409 feet.
From Coin to Newbrough, 44 miles ; fall, 429 feet.
From thence to Liverpool, 28 miles, and is level.
At Foulridge is a tunnel 1609 yards long. There is
also a collateral cut from near Shipky to the town of
Bradford.

The above is the line for which the act was ob-
tained ; but since then, many reasons have arisen to
shew. that it would be materially for the advantage of
the subscribers and of the public, to deviate from
the line originally proposed, and carry it through a
part of the country more populous, viz. froip New-

248 INLAND NAViaATIOW.

brough, by the Douglas navigation, to Wigan ; from
thence in a circular course through Red Moss, by
Blacktx)d, north for some way parallel with the Lan-
caster canal near Chorley, and by Heapy to Black-
.burn ; from whence, with a bend round Church to
Burnley, there joining the former line ; and for many*
weighty reasons, it is presumed that application will
be made to parliament for leave to pursue this course
as the more highly advantageous.

By this new line the distance and fall will be as
follows : Fcoai Leeds to Coin, the same as before
mentioned. From the summit there to Wigan 50
miles, with 3Q9 feet fall. From thence to Liverpool
35 miles, fait 30 feet ; making in distance 130 miles,,^
with 838 feet fall.

Lancaster Canal.

An act of parliament has been obtained for carry-
ing this survey into execution, and the preamble
states : " Whereas the making and maintaining a
' navigable canal fof^boats, barges, Sec. from Kirkby
Kendal, in Westmoreland, &c. &c. will be of con-
siderable advantage to the lands and estates in the
neighbourhood thereof, by making communications
from the extensive mines of eoal at the southern ex-
tremity of the said canal, to the inexhaustible quan-
tities of hme-stone at the northern end thereof, of
both which articles all the intermediate country is
greatly in want ; and also by uftiting the port of Lan-
caster with so large a tract of inland country (whercia
very extensive cotton and other manufactories are
carried on), very considerable advantages will be
derived ; and, moreover, will in other respects be of

»-'

INLAND NAVIGATION. 24g

great public utility, &c. &c." The advantages being
thus clearly pointed out, it remains only to give

The course of this canal, which is nearly due
north. It begins at West Houghton, from thence
to near Wigan, along the course of the river Douglas,
by Chorley, Whittle, and near the road from Wigan
to Preston intersects the line of the Leeds and Liver-
pool canal ; from thence crosses the river Kibble to
Preston ; from whence by Spital Moss it makes a
bend to Salwick, by Barton, to Gastang, where it
crosses the river Wyer, and thence to Lancaster ;
then running by the side of the town, it crosses the
river Loyne above Skerton, toHcst, Bolton, Carn-
forth, by Capaoway Hall, and passes Burton ; from
thence by Hang- Bridge, through a tunnel near Le-
ven's-Park^ to Kendal. There is a collateral cut
from Gale Moss by Chorley to near Duxbury ; the
length near three miles, and level : and another from
near Borwick by Warton, to Warton Crag, two miles .
and a half long, and level. The feeder is one mile
from the bason at Kendal, and is supplied from the
river Mint.

Of the length, fall, &c. of this canal, the follow-
ing are the particulars : From Kendal to Greenhead
Farm, five miles one furlong, and level. From
Greenhead Farm to near Borwick, nine miles one
furlong, with a fall of 65 feet. From Borwick to
near Preston, 42 miles 5 furlongs, arid level. From
thence to Clayton Green, three miles with 222 feet
rise. From thence to West Houghton, 15 miles 5
furlongs, and level ; making the total length near
76 miles, mth a rise of 222 feet, and a fall of 65
feet. The collateral cuts together make 5i- miles,
and are level.

250 INLAND NAVIGATION. .

A survey for this canal was made in 17 "2 by Mr.
Robert Whitworth ; but as that scheme was not purr
sued, it is needless to state further particulars of rates
of carriage, breadth and depth of the oinal : the
money to carry it into execution and complete it
was estimated at 414,100/. to be divided into lOO/.
shares, and liberty to borrow, if wanted, 200,000 h
more.

The course of this intended navigation is well
worthy attention.

From the extremity of this canal,, at Kendal in
Westmorland, it is carried on by the town of Lan-
caster into the Leeds and Liverpool canal, down to
Liverpool, from thence up the river Mersey into the
duke of firidgewater's canal as far as Preston--brook.
There the Staffordshire canal breaks off, which joins
the river Trent to the Severn ; but the navigation to
London is still carried forward by the Coventry canal^
which continues the line to where the Oxford canal
commences, which continues it to the river Thames,
and by that river it is brought forward to London ;
being a course of inland navigation, reckoning all
the windings, of very near five hundred miles
extent.

If these vast undertakings are considered as accom-
plished by private adventurers, perhaps there are
none such of equal extent to be found in the whole
world (for in other countries they are generally com-
pleted- by the government) ; and yet we have no
reason to believe that the cutting of canals is yet
(1791) at a stand in England. There are still many
tracts of country that may be advantageously con-
nected, apd probably will be so in a few years. The
junction, for instance, of the rivers Nen and Avon,

INLAND NAVIGATION. 251

by a canal from Northampton to Newbold or Rugby^
which \¥Ould jcnn the Nen and the Severn in a direct
line, and the Nen and the Thames colkterally, is an
undertaking, the expense of which would be very
inconsiderable/ in comparison with that of other fia*
vigations that have been lately completed.

A canal navigation from Biggleswade in Bedford^
shire to Hertford, to join the river Lea navigation
to London, is an event much to be wished, as well
for the country as the metropolis.

A plan has been suggested for uniting by the Bran«
don river the Lynn navigation, which already is
carried to Cambridge, to the river Lea and Stortiford
navigations, which are now navigable from London
to Bishop- Stortfbrd. This canal was intended to go
from Stortford to SafTron-Walden, thence by Linton
to join the Brandon river, with a cut from thence to
the Burwell, or Reach Lade, near Newmarket, ,which
was estimated to cost 1 75,000 /. and a bill was brought
into parliament in 17 go, but immediately rejected,
as it would have entirely taken away the trade be-
tween Lynn and Cambridge, and have transferred it
to London. The author o£ this history was consulted
by the gentleman * who carried in the bill,— but
not till after it was carried in. — He foretold him its
fate ; but the gentleman having large property in the
Stortford navigation, and its neighbourhood, and
being a member of parliament, with extensive con*-
nections, persisted in his scheme, but the bill was
thrown out on its first reading.

There have been several attempts to join the Stort-
ford and Lynn navigations at Cambridge, but the two

* George Jackson, Esq. Member of Parliament for Colchester,
Essex.

252 INLAND KAVIGATIOX.

noble owners of Audley End and Shotgrovc, through
whose parks the rivers or streams* run, have always
opposed it, and rendered abortive every attempt for
so valuable a communication.

The author of this history has pointed out a course
such a navigation might take, by carr)nng it near the
town of Royston, when the trade of that town and
neighbourhood would be easily conveyed to London,
Cambridge, and Lynn, by water carriage. By this
line all the objections which have been made to this
navigation from those noblemen, and the town and
university of Cambridge, who opposed the petition
to parliament in 1790, would be entirely ^ivoided;
and as its utility cannot but be manifest, I make no
doubt there would be more petitions in its favour,
than there were before against it. The expense would
be little more than 20,000 /.

I am willing to entertain hopes that government
will undertake the cutting of a grand canal from the
river Thames to Southampton, and consequently to
Portsmouth ; by which a certain and expeditious
communication from the metropolis, and the dock-
yards of Deptford, Woolwich, Sheerness, and Chat-
ham, may be obtained, without ships being obliged
to go round the Foreland, the Downs, and down
Channel, against tempestuous or adverse winds, in
time of war; and the convoy which is usually em-
ployed on that service, may be used for other pur-
poses, as all the victualling stores, and other articles
may go. by this canal.

And as canals are now completed from Redbridge
to Andover, and from Basingstoke to Wey bridge on
the Thames (which have long been objected to by
interested persons^ but the public good having pre-

IKLAKB KAVIGATION. 253

Vailcd over private inconvenience), we may soon ex-
pect to see the noble oak timber in the interior parts
of Hampshire and other adjoining counties, almost
useless on account of the heavy expense of conveying
it to the dock-yards, brought by cuts branching out
of and from the canal, by a cheap and ready convey-
ance, to places where the want of it has been for
years severely felt.

Basingstoke Canal*

A canal from Basingstoke was first proposed in
1772, and a petition was then presented to pariia*
ment ; but it was not intended to communicate with
the river Wey near Weybridge, but with a canal
that was then proposed to be made from Reading
to Monkey Island, near Maidenhead, in the river
Thames, by the corporation of Reading, and front
thence to be continued by the corporation of the
city of London to the river Thames at Isleworth ;
but through the opposition of the land-owners, and
other gentlemen, who had not discernment enough
to see their own interest, the scheme was frustrated.

But the plan now executed e^tperienced a more
favourable reception from the land-owners ; for, out
of the great number of proprietors of land, through
whose lands this canal passed in a course of 37 miles,
there were but two dissenting voices.

This canal promises to be of great public utility,
by furnishing an easy conveyance to the London
market, and to the public dock*yards for vast quan-
tities of timber, which at this time lies useless in the
country for want of such conveyance.

The canal begins at Basingstoke, from the little
river London, and at a place called Newman Springs,

254 IVLAHD NAVIGATIOK.

by the village of Basing ; thence passing round and
across the road at Newham, and straight by a tunnel
into the little river called Decpford ; whence it pro-
ceeds round Dogmersfield park to near Crookham,
straight along by Aldershot, over Dradbrook, which
divides the counties, and thence turns up to Colingley-
moor^ and returns by Purbright and Oak-farm into
the river Wey, near the village of Westley. It is
something more than 37 miles, with a fall of 1 95 feet
in the last 15 miles, viz. from Dradbrook ; the
other being 22 miles, is level. There is a collateral
branch over Hook Common to Turgis Green, of six
rhiles^ and level.

AxDovER Canal,

This canal was. surveyed in the year 1770, and
found to be practicable and easy, and in 1771 a pe-
tition was presented to parliament for leave to bring
in a bill to carry this useful scheme into execution ;
but nothing was then done, on account of objections
being made about the lands to be purchased, and the
damages that might be sustained, although the ad-
vantages that would accrue to this part of the country
are very considerable.

The scheme for this canal (now executed) was
revised by Mr. Whitworth in 17S9, certain objections
were removed, and the whole made more agreeable
to Jand -owners, &c. and an act was in consequence
obtained : since which it proceeded with vigour, and
was soon finished. No doubt can be entertained but
this canal will answer the well-founded expectations
of the subscribers and the public, unless the under*
hand proceedings of certain individuals should frus-
trate that hope ; but this the spirit of the inhabitants

inlAlKB navigation* 255

of the country will no doubt prevent. Monopolies
are always inimical to public benefit.

This canal begins at Barlow's Mill, and takes in
Pillhill Brook ; proceeds by Upper and Lower Clatt-
ford, Westover, and round the village of FuUerton,
at Kitcomb Bridge, by Lakeford, and through the
town of Stockbridge, by Park Farm, Mitchimus^
and Tinsbury, by Great Bridge to the town of Rum-
sey ; and thence crosses the great road from Salisbury,
to Winchester and Lower Ashford, by iSrove-placc,
and Nurslin-street to Redbridge into the Hampton-
water ; being a course of 22} miles, and a fall of .176
feet 9 inches.

Winston Canax< to Stockton on Tees.

This canal was surveyed in 1768 by Mr. Robert
Whitworth, and was intended to have been carried
into immediate execution ; but a sufficient subscripr
tion could not then be raised, it being feared that the
tolls for the goods that were likely to be carried upon
it would not pay the subscribers proper interest for
their money ; but these apprehensions have been so
satisfactorily answered by some gentlemen who are
well acquainted with that country, and have made
moderate calculations of the prodigious quantities of
coals, lime, and lead, besides other merchandise that
would be carried on the canal, that it is now beyond
a doubt that it will pay the undertakers as well as any
canal made or now making in the kingdom, that of
Birmingham only excepted (the tonnage of which
amounts to more than 1 1,000 /. per year) ; and it is
not clear whether this canal will not exceed that
sunn

256 INLAND NAVIGATIOir.

This canal begins at Winston (and the source d(
water three miles higher up), and running north ro
very hear Staindrop/ turns. westerly to Killerby, by
Legg's-cross to near Lower Walworth ; from thence
by Cockerton to Darlington, and across the high road
to Durham, and also across the river Skern ; and
thence to Bank-top, and along Maiden-dale to the
Fighting Cocks near Oak-tree and Moor-house by
Gothams- Stob and near Hartburn, into the river
Tees at Stockton ; being a course of near 27 mileSy
with a fall of 328 feet.

' There is to be a branch from the main canal, near
Lower Walworth, to Pierse-bridge into the Tees, of
one mile and three quarters ; and another cut from
Darlington to Croft-bridge on the Tees, of three
miles ; and another cut from Cothams-Stob to Yarm,
near two miles ; which together will make the com-
pletest canal in the kingdom.

Chester Canal.

The course of this canal was surveyed in the yeafS
1767 and 1769, and again in 1770, by several sur-^
veyors and engineers ; and at the latter end of the
year 1769? application was made to parliament for an
act to complete the same by the corporation and
gentlemen of Chester ; but at that time they were
unsuccessful. In the latter end of the year 1770^
they applied again to parliament, and obtained an
act J but with this extraordinary restriction, that the
branch to Middlewich should not unite or commu-
nicatc with the Grand Trunk. The canal was begun
in \772y and completed in a very short time, and is
likely to be productive of great advantages to the

INLAND NAVIGATION. ' 257*

City of Chester, and also to tlie country thrbitgh
which it passes. The branch to Middlewich has not
been carried into execution.

The course of this can^ is out of the river Dee at"
Chester, across the main road leading to Warrington,
by Christleton and Waverton, Hargrave, Huxly, and
over Brassey-green, near Beeston- castle, to Tiverton ;
it then turns to the right to Hurleston, Acton, and
Nantwich ; going a course of about 1 7 miles. Irs
rise from Chester to Tiverton is 170 feet 10 inches ;
from thence to Nantwich is a dead level.

Birmingham Canal.

This canal begins at Birmingham, and proceeds
to Wilsdon-green and Smethwick, by Blue-gates,
West Bromwich, Oldbury, over Puppy-green, by
Ghurch-lane, Tipton » and Bilston ; by the skirts of
the town of Wolverhampton, by Gosbrook-mill,
near Aldersley, into the Staffordshire canal, which
unites the grand trunk with the Severn; being a
course of 22 miles, with a rise from Birmingham to
Smethwick of 1 8 feet ; from this place to Wolver-
hampton is a level ; from thence to Alciersley there
is a fell of 114 feet in the short space of one mile
and three quarters. Out of this canal, at West
Bromwich, there is a cut or branch which passes
over Ryder*s-grcen to the collieries at Wednesbury ;
being 4 \ miles, with a fall of 46 feet.
f The other canals to- the several coal-mines and
towns were surveyed in 1775. A canal begins
about a mile from the town of Dudley, near the-
engines which are next Netherton-hall, and pro-
ceeds across Knowl-brook, and along Dudley- wood
side through Urchill- coppice and Brierly-hill cop-

9,59 IBTLANlf KAVIGATlOir*

pice to Black Delft, and^ taking a large circuit round
Brierly-hill church, and across Brittle-lane, between
the fire-engine and Seaton*8 engrne, falls isito a canal
on the left of Brockmorc- green, which comes from
the right from Bromley fenn» and Pensnett-chace,
where there is a large reservoir of water, for a head
to the navigation^ of near 1 2 acres. It then pro-*
ceeds almost in st straight line to Wordsley^ across
the high road from Stourbridge to HamptoA, along
WordsJey-field, and across the river Stour, which
runs up to Stourbridge, and runs on the left by Bell'a
mill, through AfFcott- meadows into the grand trunks
at 34 miles from the Trent navigation, and 12 miles
from the Severn. At the elbow and confluence of
the river Stour with the rivef SmestaH, very near
Stourton, a branch goes off to the left by Wbrdsley-
field, along Addenham-bank, by Woollaston^ Hoi-
loway-bead, round Sot's*hoIe^ into the river Stour,
at the extremity of the town of Stourbridge.

From the junction of the Wolverhamptesi canal
to that of the Dudley casal^ five mUes> and the rise
191 feet 3 inches : the branches to Stottrbsidge and
to Pensnett i^aenroir ait 2 miles l furlong, and level ;
from the Wolverhampton canal to the lesetvoir on
Fensnett-cbace the distance i» 6 mile» I furkmg, and
the rise 19 1 feet 3 inches ; from Stourbridge to the
branch of the reservoiTj^ one mile and a quarter^ and
level.

The proprietors of this canal are empoweiied to
make such new cuts as may be necessary for the uses
of the collieries^ &c.

The great profits arising from this canal have caused
several rival schemes to be agitated.

iNtAKP HAVlOATIQJf. 25^

The Ekewash Can-al. " '
At the time when the naivigable canals were maki
ingin the interior parts 6f the country, it was pro*^
posted by the gentlemen and owners of the extensivd
coal-mines in the neighbourhood of Heanor, Lang-
ley, in Derbyshire, Eastwood, Awsworth, Cossall^
Ilkeston, &c. to carry their coals to the Trent, which,
for want of a water carriage, lay useless both to the
owners and to the public. Accordingly a survey was
made, a plan drawn, and an estimate of the expense
produced, in 1776; but it was not till 1777 that an
act was obtained to execute it.

This canal is nearly parallel with the river Erewash,
and passes by all the above coal-works or mines, and
is carried over Nott-brook, by an aqueduct, to Sta-
pleford and Sandy-acre, and across the main road
from Nottingham to Derby, and by Long Eaton in-
to the Trent, not far from Sawley- ferry ; after a
course of 1 1 ^- miles^ with a fall of i 80 feet 8 inches.

Chesterfield Canal.

The late Mr. Brindley, in the year 1769, pro-,
jected this canal, surveyed the ground^ and delivered
in an estimate requisite for its completion, which be
stated at 100,000/. The plan met with general ap-
probation, and an act of parliament was obtained for
carrying it into execution in the spring of 1 770 ; and
notwithstanding the act prohibited the proprietors
from beginning the work till the whole sum of
ro^OOO/. was subscribed, this canal was conceived
to be of such consequence by the gentlemen, land*
owners, and owners of coal-works, that ihat sum
was subscribed as soon as the contents of th^ act

s 2

260 INLAND KAVIOATION.

were known. The work was therefore immediately
begun, and carried on under the direction of Mr<
Brindley till his death, and since that time contintied
and completed by Mr. Henshall. In the course of
this canal, the engineer has had numerous difficulties
to encounter ; the principal of which were at Harts-
hill, where the canal is carried under ground near
3000 yards.

This canal is of inestimable advantage to the neigh-
bouring country, in conveying coals, lead, stone,
lime, and other heavy articles ; which are now car-
ried at one-fifth part of the usual price of land-
carriage, and with equal expedition. It has always
produced to the subscribers a profit exceeding their
most sanguine expectation.

The course of this canal begins at Chesterfield,
and proceeds by RickettVmill, near Staveley-forge,
by Staveley-town and coal-works, the Hague, and'
near Eckington and Killmarsh, to the beginning of
the tunnel at Hartsbill ; and at the length of 3000
yards comes out again near Peck's- mill, and proceeds
then by Shire Oaks to Worksop, across the Royton
river at Kilton. It thence takes a circuit to near
Bilby-hall, and round again to Babwo.rth,and almost
all round the town of Retford ; then turns from the
south-west to due north, and passes by Welham,
Clareborough, Clawarth, and round Crindley on >
the Hill, to Misterton, into the Trent, near
Stockwith; after traversing a course of 44\ miles,
\vith a rise of 45 feet from Chesterfield to Nonvood,
and a fall of 335 feet from Norwood to the river
Trent.

IKtAND NAVIGATION. ftJl

BuDB Canal to Launceston.

The act nominates 80 trustees for completing the
canal, by the following course : From the port Bude,
Cornwall, through the several parishes of Marhani
Church, Poundstoke, Flyke, St. Mary Whitestone,
Launcells, Bridgerule, North Tamerton, Boyton,
Werrington, North Pitherwin, Tremain, Egleskerry,
St. Thomas, St. Mary Magdalen, South Petherwin,
Tremaine, Laneast, Alternon Lewanick, North Hill,
Linkinghom, Stocke Climsland, and Calstoke, in
Cornwall and Devon, to the river Tamer.

The powers of the proprietors are next ascertained,
which are similar to those granted by other acts of
the same kind.. A panicular clause states, that the
cut or canal be carried under ground, and arched
Over for a {space of 300 fee(, near to the mansion-*
house of Whitcford, in the parish of Stocke Clims-
land. The land to be used for the canal not to ex-
ceed 63 feet in width, towing-paths included, ex-
cept for making a dock or basin ; nor to be of a
greater depth than SQ inches ; and. in such places
where it shall be judged necessary for boats and
other vessels to turn, lie in, or pass cai^h other, or
where any engine or crane may be erected^ not above
20 poles in breadth.

The estimate for completing this cana] was 4O,0O0A
with liberty to borrow 20,000/. more, if necessary;'

This canal, I believe, is not finished, nor likely to
be ; because the chief commodity of traffic would be
coals from Wales ; on which account, though coal§
are very much wanted on the whole length of tfee
canal, the subscribers are afraid of undertaking it.

26} IHLANH VAViaATlOK.

Canal prom Market Wkxghtoic to the Humbeb.

In the East Riding of Yorkshire.

The preamble of the bill is as follows : Whereas
certain commoAs^ low grounds and cars^ within or
near the villagesi townships^ or parishes of Market
Weighton, Blaqktoft, Everingbam, Harsewcll, Sea-
ton^ Ross^ Holme upon Spalding-moor, Frogga^-
thrope^ Gribthrope^ Spaldbgton, Bursea, Hasholm>
Wholsea, North Qiffe, South ClifFe, Hotham
Houghton, Bromfleet^ Faxfleet, Shipton^ Sancton,
and also a certain common called Walling Fenn,
containing 20,000 acres, ar^ subject to be overflowed,
and unprofitable to the proprietors ; and whereas the
draining of the said commons, low grounds,- cars, and
fens, and the making the main principal drain aavi^
gable from the river Humber, at or near a place
called Fossdykp Clough, situate on the banks of
the sai4 river, m\\ be of great utility to the public ;

but the same cannot be ^fleeted without the aid oi

parliament; May it therefore please your Majesty,
&c.

Tq give an abstract of the act would be super-
lluous, as the preamble cqmprehends its nature and
utility.

The tolls to be taken not to exceed As. for every
tP.9 ^f gr^O^ goods, v('ares and merchandises ; 2s.
for every chaldrqn of coals ; \s. 6d. for every chal-
dron of lin^e ; is. for every ton of stone ; 6d. for
f yery ton of niwurjp of all sorts ; 2s. for every 1 000
^f tiles; \s. for ^very 1000 of bricks; and 8d. for
fj^ry pack of wool, conuining l6 stone to each
paclf;^ ; to be paid in prqpprtion of the distance ; the
whole l)eing payable from the Humber to Market

Wcigfaton. No tolls to be paid by boats for plea^
Burei or Tegsels laden with xMt^rials for the purpose
of drainage or navigation.

This canal is finished^ and turns out greatly to
the advantage of the land-owners and proprietors,
not only in draining the lands, but by facilitating the
carriage of the produce and manufactures of a large
extent of country, which before were carried at a
very great expense by lahd-canrilage.

Sir NioEj; Gbbsley's Canal.

In the year 1773, an act was granted to enable
Sir Nigel Gresley, baft, and Nigel Bowypr Gresley^
esq. his son, to make and maintain a navigable cut
or canal from certain coal-ibines in Apedale to New^-
castle-under-Line, in the county of Staflford.

The preamble of the bill is as fdlows : Whereas
Sir Nigel Gresley, bart, and Nigel BowyerGre$ley,esq.
son and heir-apparent of the said Sir Nigel Gresley,
are proprietors of several considerable coal-mines,
and veins of coal, within th^ manor of Apedale, in
Staffordshire : and whereas the making a navigable
cut or canal from the said coal-mines to Newcastle-
under-Line, in the said county, will be of particular
^vantage to the inhabitants of the said town, and
parts adjacent, and of public utility ! and whereas the
said Sir Nigel Gresley and his son are the propri-
etors of 4 considerable part of' the land through
which the said cut or canal is proposed to be made,
and are willing and desirous, at their own expense, to
make and maintain si|ch cut or canal ; May it there**
fore please, &c.

Then follow tlie usual clauses of all navigation
acts, The width of the canal, towing- path », fences,
4

2(S4 INLAND NAVIGATION.

the ditches, and dnuns, not to exceed 36 yards, except
in such places where the said cut or canal shall be

raised Higher, or tut more than feet deeper

than the surface of thp land ; and in such places
where vesspls lie, or pasj each other, or where any
crane may be erected, not to exceed 6o yards. The-
proprietors glso lengage tq deliver coals from their
coal-tpines as aforesaid, at the tqwn of Newcastle*
under- Line, to the inhabitants thereof, at the price
of 5^. per ton of 20cwt. of 120 lbs, per cwt. for a
term of 21 years ) and for 5s. 6d. per ton for the en-
duing further term of 21 years, anid so in proportion
for any greater or less quantity than a ton. And
they also oblige themselves to keep a stock at their
, wharf at or near the town of Newcastle, for the conT
sumption of the town, under a penalty of 40 /. and
the inhabitants wanting a less quantity than a ton,
they are to be delivered to them at 3-^d. per cwt. A
clause is also inserted, that the commissioners, on
proof of great expenses, &c. may raise the price
of coals, ttxe second term of 21 ycar^, to 0j. per
ton.

Earl of Thanet's Canal.

In the year J773 an act passed to enable the right
honourable Sackville earl of Thanet to make ^ na-
vigable cut or canal from a place called the Springs
lying near Skipton Castle, Yorkshire, to join and
comtpunicate with the navigable ^anal from Leeds
tp Liverpool, in the clpse called Hebbjc End Close,
in the township pf Skiptop, Yorkshire.

The preamble sets forth : That whereas thp owners
ap4 occupiers of land, and others the inhabitants a(
o? pear Leeds, Bradford^ Bindley, Keighly, Sillsden^

UPLAND HAVlOATIOJf^ 263

and other places lying contiguous to the said
C^nal, have occasion for, and frequently are in
creat^want of lime and lime-stones to improve their
lands,and for other purposes; and the righthonourablc
carl of Thanct is possessed of . grounds near Skip-
ton Castle aforesaid, in which are great quantities
of lime-stone rocks, within 500 yards from that part
of the intended canal which lies nearest to the town
of Skipton ; and whereas it is very practicable to make
^ canal for the navigation of boats and other vessels
from the aforesaid spring which joins the lime-stone
I'ocks^ through the land?, grounds and wastes of thQ
said earl, s^nd other land belonging to the free gram-r
mar-schoql at Skipton aforesaid, to join and com-
municate with the navigable canal from Leeds to
Liverpool at a place called Hebble End Close, in the
township of Skipton ; and whereas to accommodate
the aforesaid towns, and inhabitants, as also the ad-
jacent country, with lime and lime-stone, the sai4
earl is desirous of ci:(tting a canal at his own expense^
and to keep and maintain the same, together with
the roads and towing-paths; but the same cannot;
be effected withotit the aid of ps^rliament; be it
enacted, &c.

The act is short j the canal going entirely through
Jiis lordship's grounds, except Hebblc's-close-field,
which belonged to the free grammar-school a;
{Skipton. Arbitrators were appointed for the pur?
chase ; and the act provides, a$ usual, for the making
pf bridges, towing-paths^ aquediicts, tunnels, ^c^
fcc. ^c.

HfiRsroitii Aifi> Gloucbst£r Cakal.
In 1701 an act of parliament was obtained for
making the above canal, which has the following
course. — Beginning at Hereford, it goes northerly,
and crosses the river Lugg, below Sutton St. Mi-
chael^ and Sutton St. Nicholas ; whence it pursues
nn easterly course, by WestrHide, Cannon-Froomc,
Munsley ; crosses the river Leadon below Bosbury,
and pursues a southerly course, by Ledbury, Din-
nington, to Dimmock ; about two miles below Led-
bury it again crosses the river Leadon : from Dim-
mock it goes easterly for. about four miles, and twice
crosses the river Leadon, and passes by Pauntley
Upleadon, Newent, Rudford, and Lassington ;
crosses again the river Leadon, and a branch of the
Severn ; thence across Alncy Island, and into the
Severn, opposite Gloucester. The length and lock-
age are as follow :•— rFrom Widcmarsh, near Here-
ford, to Withington -marsh, is six miles, and level,
^om thence to the beginning of the summit, near
Monkhide, is three miles, and 30 feet rise. The
summit continues 8^ mi!es, to Ledbury, and is level.
From thence to Gloucester 18 miles, and falls 1 93
feet 7 inches. — ^The total length is 35 miles 5 fur-
longs, with 225 feet 8 inches lockage. The col-
lateral cut to Newent is three miles, and ten feet fall
to the junction. At the beginning of this canal, near
Hereford, is a tunnel of 440 yards ; and another
about the middle of the summit, 1,320 yards long-
Thc width of the canal,- towing-paths, &c. is 14
yards, with a power of iising all spripgs, &c. within
3,000 yards, with some exceptions. The expense is
estimated at 25,000/. with liberty to rais? 30^000/-
more, if wanting,

INLAND NATIOATXON« a^Jf

Bj this cansU fi communicattoa will be opened fb?
the collieries in the neighbourhood of Newent, and
other tracts of land possessing laige mines of coal, and
with several lime-stooe quarries ; and not oidy the
vicinity of Hereford, but the interior of that part of
Bquth Wales^ will be much benefited, as thereby
a. continued water-carriage may be effected to the
several ports of London^ firistol, Liverpool, and^
JIulU

Kington and Leominster Canal.

The act for this canal was obtained in 1791, and
has the following route. — Beginning at Kington, it
passes by Stanton, Kingsland, where it crosses the
river Lugg, and makes a bend to Leominster^
whence it turns between Eye and Berrington, by
Orleton, Brimfield, where it crosses the river Teme,
by Little Hereford, Burford, Tenbury, Rocbford,
Knighton ; there crosses the river Rea, and goes on
to Lindndge, Low, Pensax, through a tunnel to
Jones's Flole, and by Ariey, there falling into the
Severn, just above Stourport.

From Kington to near Stanton Park, four miles,
and level. From thence to Milton, 24- miles, and a
fall of 1 52 feet. From thence to near Kingsland is
3-j- miles, aiid 37 feet fall. From thence to Leo-
minster is 4-i- miles^ and 64 feet fall. From Leo-
minster, at 14- mile, is a rise of 18 feet. From thence
to Wiston is 5^ miles, and level. From thence to
Letwich Brook, 44 miles, and 36 feet fall. From thence
to the river Rea is seven miles, and level. Thence
to the tunnel at Sousnant is one mile, and rise 30
feet. From thence it is level nine miles through the
long tunnel at Pen^x; froip thence to the junction

l68 iKtAKB navigation;

tvkh the Severn^ being a little more than three miles^
is a fall of 207 feet. The total length is something
more than 45 miles $ and the total lockage is 544
feet, viz. 496 feet fillip aitd 48 feet rise. On this
canal are two tunnels; that at Sousnant, of 1,250
yards; the other at Pensax, 3,850 yards. Near
Tenbury are two collateral cuts for the accom-
modation of certain mills in the neighbourhood.

The ground allowed for the canal, towing-path,
^c. is 26 yards, with power to use springs, &c.
within 2,000 yards — certain waters excepted. The
money to be raised is 1 50,000 /. and liberty to raise
40,000 /. more if wanted.

The rates of tonnage are long, but useless to the
generality of readers.

The advantages expected from the line of this
canal are, an easy conveyance of coal, lime, and iroa
pre, those necessary articles to husbandry and ma*
nufactures, for which the demand will be increased
by the cheapness of carriage ; whereby the working
of the old quarries will be encouraged, and new ones
opened ; being an easy conveyance by water to the
ports of London, Liverpool, Bristol, and Hull, in-
cluding an immense tract of manufacturing country.

It is proposed to introduce on this canal somo
inclined planes for the use of the navigation, which I
hope will answer the purposes proposed, as they pos**
sess many advantages in situations where water is
scarce^ and their construction is lesi expensive than
locks. The first idea of which, I presume, was takea
from my description of them in the Chinese method
explained in my 4to edit, of the History of Inland
Navigation; published j/pi.

IKLAND KAVI6ATI01f» 26^

Worcester and Birmingham Ganal.

This canal begins at Birmingham ; from whence it
takes a course through the parishes * of Edgbaston,
Northfield, King's-norton, Alvechurch, Tardebig,
Stoke-prior, Dodderhill, Hanbury, Hadsor, Him-
bleton, Oddingley, Tibberton, Hinlip, " Warndon,
Clains, St. Martin's, and, at Diglis, adjoining the
south side of Worcester, falls into the Severn.

The length of this line is 31-^ miles, of which the
first J 6 miles from Birmingham are upon a level ;
the remaining 1 5^ miles, have a fall of 448 {ctt^
The water for this canal is to be raised from the river
Severn by fire-engines, together with such springs as
may arise in making the canal. The Worcester
company arc restrained from making a junction with
the Birmingham and Fazeley canal ; but the pro-
prietors of that canal are not restrained from making
the junction. This proceeds from the apprehension
of the Birmingham canal losing water. Indeed the
Worcester cotnpany appear very much distressed for
water ; and they are restricted from using nearly all
the brooks which lay in the line.

The width of the canal, towing-paths, &c. is 30
yards. The company are allowed to raise 1 80,000 /.
and 70,000 /. more if necessary.

Compensation is to be made by the Worcester
company to the Droitwich canal company, if their
profits do not amoimt to five per cent, on each share ;
and to the Stourbridge canal company, if their pro-
fits do not amount to Q L per cent, on each share.
Also to the Dudley extension canal, if their profits are
decreased. Also, an annual compensation to the water-
bailiff of Worcester, in lieu of his dues upon coals*

S7Cr XiVLAVD MAVIGAtfOlf^

The completion of this canal shortens the com-
municatioa fer the manufactories of Birmingham
with all the tradiog toWDS on the Bristol channel ;
and, in return^ will afford to the goods of those town^
a certain conveyance to London^ Iiyer{)ool, Hull, &c.
The Wednesbury coal also will hare an easy carriage,
as well along the whole line of the canal, as to many
cities and towns which are below Worcester on the
banks of the Severn.

Nor. lS^02*-^Rimarh §m the fngreu ^fCanuU*

The Worcester and Birminghatxi c^nal shares of 140 A had
fiillen to nothing ; a plan for the completion is la agitation j ihr
shares have risen to 40 A

Manchestek Cakal to Boltom And Bury.

This canal commences on the north side of Man-
chester, and joins the riVer Irwell, with which it runs
nearly parallel in its northerly course, and crosses it
above Clifton Hall, running byits side up to Bolton^
in its way crossing the river Roach, where also the
branch goes to Bury, making the total length 1 5
miles 1 ftirlong, with 1 87 feet rise.

The ground allowed for the canal, towing-path/
Sec. is a6 yards ; no water to be taken from the
rivers Irwell and Lever. The money allowed to be
raised is 47,000/. and 20,000/. more by mortgage
or shares, if wanted.

This canal will open a cheap and easy communi-'
cation, not only to the before-mentioned towns,
but will also be highly convenient for the intermediate
country, which abounds with mines of coal, and
other minerals, in great request at Manchester, its
connections and dependencies.

li^LANS KtknOAtl01!t4 lift

Lgicbster NaVI61BI«S CaNAI'.

This canal begins at^ and connects at the bason
of the Loughborough canal ; passes on the north side-
of the town, and falls into the river Soar, at the.
village of Quarndon« Thus far is a ntw cut ; the
remainder is only improving the rivers with occasional
cuts and deviations. From this union the river Soar
is to be made and kept navigable for boats, bai^es^
&c. to its junction with the river Wreak; wbicb
river is also to be made navigable to Turnwater mea«
dow, in the parish of Gossingtan : through this
meadow, and the parishes of Syston^ BarUy, and
ThurmastOD, there is a cut made to avoid some shal-
lows which again falls ^ into the Soar, which also id
tabe made navigable to West^rbridge, in the town of
Leicester.

The rail-ways, &c- are as follow : — From Thring*
ston-bridge to Forest-lane, there is a water level,
through the parishes of Osgathorp, Gracedieu, Bel-
ton, Sheepshead, and Beaumanour ; which level is
ilso continued, by a rail- way, to the bason of the
Loughborough canal. There are rail-ways to the
water level, from Messrs. Rapcr and Fenton*s coal-
works, and from Mr. Boultbee^s and Mr. Burslem*s coal-
workB. From Thringston-bridge another water level
is made to the lime-works at Barrowhill and Cloud-
hill, with rail-ways. Power is also given to the com-
pany to make other rail-ways connecting with the
water levels, not exceeding 2,000 yards long. The
reservoir for the water levels is to be upon Cham-
wood-foresfy between Goat-house and Blackbrook
bridge.

72 IVLANB NAVlOAflOi^*

From Thringston-bridge to the Loughborough
canal is 7-i. miles, with 185 feet fall. From the
Loughborough canal to the junction with thd riVer
Soar is more than 3 miles, and level. Froiti this
junction to Leicester is 11 miles, with 45 feet ri^.

This canal crosses the Loughborough canal withiti
300 yards of its termination ; for which, and other
reasons, the Leicester company guarantee to the
Loughborough company aooo/. per annum; for
which guarantee, &c« they agree not to take more
than Is. 6 J. nor less than lOd. per ton, for coal
navigated from the Trent to Loughborough.

The breadth allowed for the canal, towing-paths,
&c. is 20 yards. The company may raise 46,000/.
and, if more be wanted, 20,000/. more.

The powers of this act, obtained in 179 1, ^^^"^
been long wished for. Perseverance has at last ob«-
tained the object, which will opea a cheap and easy
conveyance for the produce of the mines, which are so
plentiful about Thringston-bridge ; which will not
only greatly improve the estates, but also accommo-
date, at a cheap rate, a large extent of country with
coal, lime, &c. passing one way into the Trent with
all its extents, the other way to Leicester and Melton
Mowbray ; from which latter place new schemes are
in agitation, of great extent, and usefulness.

Leicester Canal to Melton Mowbray.

This act was obtained in 1791, and enables the
proprietors to make the rivers Wreak and Eye navi-
gable, from the junction at Turnwater Meadow to
Melton Mowbray, by new cuts and deviations where
necessary; and to cleanse, deepen, enlarge, alter,
straighten, &c. ; to make new trenches or passages

INLAND NAVIOATION. 273

for water, in or upon the grounds adjoining. The
breadth of new cuts and towing-paths not to exceed
20 yards ; and the towing-path on the side of the
rivers 3 yards, or 6 in crooked places. They are
allowed to raise 25,000 A and liberty to raise 5000/.
more if wanted.

The above mentioned navigation is but a continu-
ation of the Leicester canal ; the result of benefits
must be nearly the same.

Arundel Canal.

This act, obtained in 1791, empowers the Right
Hon« Earl of Egremont, his heirs, &c. to make and
maintain the river Rpther navigable for boats, barges^
&c. from a piece of ground called the Lower Piatt,
near Midhurst, Sussex, through the several parishes
of WooUavington, Easebourn, Ambersham, Selham,
Lodsworth, Tillington, Burton, Duncton, Petworth,
• Sutton, Coates, Egdean, Fittlewonh, Bury, Coldwal-
tham, and Stopham, to a cecfain piece of land called
Stopham Meadow, and from hence to make a
navigable canal to the river Arun near Stopham-
bridge ; and also to make another navigable cut from
the river Rother, near Stopham-bridge, to Hasling-
bourn-bridge, in the parish of Petworth, Power as
usual is given to cleanse, scour, deepen, enlarge, &c.
and to make towing-paths, &c.

Every exerrion to render the inland navigation of
this country more complete, deserves much .praise ;
and there can be no doubt but the patriotic under-
/ taker of this canal will not only benefit his own

lands and estates, but receive the thanks of the
neighbouring country, for so noble an exertion for
their accommodation.

274 INLAND NAVIOATION.

L&wrs Canal.

Befbre this act passed, which was in 1791 9 the
river Quse between Newhaven- bridge and Lewis was
navigable only for small barges at particular times of
tides ; but, by widening, deepening, and some new
cuts, it will make the river constantly navigable for
boats of larger burthen. It is intended So to deepen
the river as at ordinary neap tides to admit vessels
drawing four feet water, up to Lewis-bridge ; whereby,
of course, the trade and commerce on the same will
be much accommodated and increased. For this pur-
pose the trustees have extensive powers to cleanse,
deepen, scour, widen, straighten, &c. the said river,
and to make new cuts, and for this purpose may use
any land within 2000 yards of the river ; may take
soil, gi^avei, &c. for the purpose of embanking ; and
may throw or cast soil, &c. oh the adjoining grounds.

A great use also intended, is to drain certain lands
lying to the east of Lewis, called Laughton Levels ;
which will be done by embanking and straightening
the river up to Lewis-bridge, and at certain places
higher up the river.

And, for the purposes of this act, the trustees
are empowered to borrow money on the security
of tolls and taxes. A statement of which is deemed
useless.

By this actu vast quantity of land will be greatly
benefited by drainage : as the embankments are to
be continued on the east side of the river, above
Lewis-bridge, to a place called Bushy Brook ; and
on the west side, above Lewis-bridge to the upper
end of the new cut ; and on the north side
of Glynd Sewer, from Sound to the Sw^l Bank ;

ilCLAKD NAVIOATIOK* ^^5

iind on the south side, frpm Sound to a piece of
land called the Cockfield, &c. &c. which lands are
divided into five divisions, and ate liable to certain
rates which are under the direction of the commis^
sioners of sewers. The lands below Ncwhaven-
bridge are exempted from rateS; and arc to maintain
their own walls, &cc*

MoNMOUTHSHlkE CanAL, 1792-

This canal commences on the west side of thft
town of Newport, having a basin connected with the
river Usk ; it passes between the town and the river,
and crosses the Chepstow road : from thence, by
Malpas, it pursues its route parallel to, and near
the river Avon, by Ponty Pool to .Pontnewyndd,
being near 11 miles, with a rise of 12 feet in the
first mile ; the remaining 10 miles have a rise of
435 feet : from nearly opposite Malpas a branch or
canal takes its course parallel to the river Ebwy to
near Crumlin-bridge, being a course of near 1 1 miles
from the junction, with a rise of 358 feet^-Making
the total length of the two canals 22 miles 2 chains^
with 805 feet lockage.

From Pontnewyndd there is a fait-road alongside
the river Avon to the furnaces at Blaen-Ason, being
5 J miles, with 6 10 feet rise ; and from Ponty Pool
there is a rail-way to Tronsnant Furnace of one mile
long, with a branch to the furnaces at Blaen-Dir of
half a mile : from Crumlin bridge a rail- way is con-
tinued alongside the river Ebwy, a branch of which
it crosses, after a continuance of three miles, with a
rise of 139 f^^^* This road is continued alongside
the Ebwy Fawr river, by Ebwy Vale Furnace, to
the iron-works at Beaufort, being continued near 7

T 2

27<5 INLAND NAVIGATION.

miles, with 480 feet rise : from near the extremity
of this road there is a branch to Sorwy Furnace, of
1 ^ mile. There is also another rail-way along the
river called Ebwy Frach to Nant-y-glo, 6^ miles^
with a rise of 518 feet.

The act for this canal was obtained in 1 792. The
proprietors are called ** The Company of Proprietorr
of the Monmouthshire Canal Navigation." The seve-
ral places receiving accomrnodations from this canal
are before mentioned ; it is needless to enlarge on
the benefits they will receive, more than to say—
The act authorises the proprietors to make new rail-
ways to any iron-works, lime-stone quarries, or coal-
mines, within 8 miles ; the same may be done by
owners of iron-works, &c, if the company refuse.

The ground allowed for this canal, towing-path,
ditches, &c. is 26 yards, and the company are em-
powered to raise 120,000/. to be divided into shares
of lOO/. each ; and liberty to raise 6o,000/. more if
wanted.

Five per cent, of the clear profits of this under-
taking is to be invested in government securities, till
the same amounts to lOOO/. as a fund for repairs.
When the profits shall enable the company to share
10 per cent, the commissioners are empowered to re-
duce the tolls ; and first on coals. If, in consequence
of the reductions, 10 per cent, cannot be divided, the
tolls may be advanced. Boats under 20 tons are not
to pass locks without leave, or paying for that
quantity.

Every advantage resulting from canals in general
may be expected from this in particular ; no part of
a country stood more in need of it, nor can any be
more benefited. The bowels of the earth are here

INLAND NAVIGATION. 277

loaded with minerals — hitherto unsought for, and
little known, merely for want of such a conveyance
to market. This is now obtained, old mines will be
explored, new ones discovered, and mother Earth
ransacked for her hidden treasures. Nor will the
forests on her surface longer remain neglected ; all
will yield to, the converting hand of industry. Pos-
sessions will be greatly increased in value, and the
labourer will find lasting food for his perseverance on
ores of iron and lead, stone and lime quarries, tim-
ber trees, &c. which, by so ready a conveyance to
the Bristol channel, will spread not only over England,
but the world.

It is proposed to use inclined planes on this canal,
which, doubtless, from the abilities of the engineer
(Mr. T. Dadfield, jun.) employed in their construc-
tion^ will be made to answer well.

Nov. 1802.— -J^Mjrii on the frogreu of Canals,

The Mornnouthshire canal does not yet rise as it was expected ;
the last dividend wa« 2L I2i. 6d.

CooMBE Hill Canal.

This canal takes its name from Coombe Hill, in
the parish of Leigh, Gloucestershire, where it begins,
and joins the Severn at Fletcher's Leap, in the parish
of Deerhurst, passes through the commons of Leigh
and Deerhurst, and is 3§ miles long, with a fall of
15 feet.

This canal is the sole property of only three pri-
vate persons, who obtained the act in 1792, Thomas
Surges, and William Miller, Esqrs. and Mrs. Sarah
Mumford. It was undertaken for the purpose of
affording a cheap and shortened carriage from the

278 INLAND NAVIGATION,

Severn to Cheltenham ; — the distance being, cither
from Gloucester or Tewksbury, Q miles ; whereas
from Coombc Hill it is only four miles. There are
also large collieries in the neighbourhood^ which
liaturally must be gready benefited by this canal.

Manchester and Oldham Canal,

This canal was begun in 1702, and commences on
the east side of Manchester^ near a street called Pic-
cadilly ; crosses the main road to Ashton, and the
river Medlock ; passes Fairfield, and ends at Ashton-
under-Lyne^ Lancashire. At Fairfield a branch
goes off to the New Mill near Oldham ; and from
this branch there is a f ut to Park Colliery. The
total length is II miles, with 152 feet rise.

The breadth allowed for the canal, towing-paths,
Ixc. is 30 yards, and not to deviate more than 100
yards from the line laid down.-r-The proprietors are
lallowed to raise <3o,000/. and, ' if not sufficient,
30,000/. more.

This canal and branches will supply the town of
Manchester with coals and cannel (^hich 4re essen-
tial to the manufactures of Manchester), and also
with stone; and will supply the country through
which it passes, with linie and manure for the im-
provements of land.

Nov.' 1802. Remarh on the Progress of Canals*
The Ash ton canal, a discount of 2C7.

WyBLEY AND ESSINGTON CaNAL.

This canal was begun in 1 79^, and commences at
a place called Wyrley Bank, Staffordshire ; passes
through the Old Field, over Essington Wood and
jte Snead Commons, across the road from Wedng^-

-7

JNtANB NAVIGATION. 279

field to Bloxwich ; from the south side of Bloxwich,
in a direct line to Birchill. From Snead Common
the canal goes through Lane Head, near Perry Hall ;
from thence to Laplcy Hayes, near the Moat House,
to Wednesfield, by the Heath, and there joins the
Birmingham canal. The branches arc — one from
near Wolverhampton to Stow Heath, another from
the canal at Pool Hayes into Ashmore Park, with
another from I^pley Hayes into another part of Ash-
more Park.

The length of this canal is near Q miles ; but I havo
DO account of the Ipckage. The width of ground
allowed for the canal, towing-path, &c, i& 26 yards.
The proprietors are allowed to raise 95,000/. and,
^0,000 A more, if wanted.

The intent of thi3 canal is to convey the produce
of the mines in its neighbourhood, at a cheap rate,
to the several manufactories ^using the same.

HORNCASTLE AND LiNCOLV NAVIGATION,

This act passed also in 1 7Q2, authorising the pro-
prietors to purchase Messrs. Dyson and Gibson^s in-
terest in the Tattershall canal; to deepen, widen,
and enlarge the same ; and extend it to the river
Bain, within the parish of Tattershall : also, to make
the river Bain, and the streams communicating there-
with near the town of Horn castle, navigable to Horn-
castle, lincolnshtre, from the junction of the canal ;
and to make any new cuts on the sides of the river,
to staighten its course, and to avoid mills or other
obstructions. The breadth of the river, or cuts,
towing-paths, drains, fences, is not to exceed ao
yards.

aSO INLAND NAVIGATION*

As it is expected the trade of this navigation ^11
cause a great increase of tonnage on the Witham
river, goods which pass to or from the Horncastle
navigation, on the Witham river, are to pay but half
the accustomed dues to the Witham company.

The proprietors are empowered to raise 15,000/.
to be divided into shares of 50/. each, with hberty
to raise 10,000/. more if the first sum is insufficient.

When the profits from the tolls arise to a dividend
of more than 8 per cent, the toljs are to be lowered,
^reserving a capital of lOOO/. for contingencies.

To make this navigable communication complete
at all times, the act empowers the commissioners of
the river Witham 'to make that river completely
navigable through the High Bridge in the city of
Lincoln, into the Fosdike canal.

The expenses of this improvement are to be borne
and defrayed, for 7 years jointly, by the Witham
company, and the two companies of the Sleaford
and Horncastle navigation.

The cojnpletion of the purposes of this act will
afford a desirable navigation and conveyance for
goods to the Trent, greatly advantageous to the
county of Lincpln,

Sliiaford Navigation,

This act, obtained in 1792, authorises the pro-
prietors to complete a navigation, and keep the same
passable for reels, boats, &c. from the river Witham,
near Chapel-hill, along the course of the river Kyme
Eau, and Sleaford mill-stream, to New Sleaford,
and Old Sleaford, Lincolnshire, through the south
bridge in Sleaford, and along the south branch of
the mill-stream, to thp castle cfiuseway, For this

INLAND NAVIGATION. 2B1

purpose they are to deepen, widen, contract, &c. to
make new cuts where wanting, so as to have the
water 1 8 feet wide at the bottom. 30 feet wide at
/the top, and four feet deep up to Haverholm-mill,
and from thence to the castle causeway to be five
feet deep ; and they are allowed to have water from
the fen lying above the head of the navigation in
New Sleaford. '

The locks on the navigation are to be 6o feet long,
and 1 5 feet wide in the clear. The tolls on the river
Witham are to be reduced one half to goods passing
on this navigation — ^and the same to the Horncastle
company. The Witham tolls are to be equal, pas-
sing either to Lincoln, or to Boston. The company
are authorised to raise 1 3,000/. to be divided into
shares of lOO/. each ; and may raise 10^000 /. more,

if wanted.
The profits or dividends arising from this na^-

gation, are limited to eight per cent. ; and when
they exceed that sum, after reserving a fund of
1,000/. for contingencies, the tolls are to be re-
duced.

This year, 1792, an act was obtained for improv-
ing the navigation of the river Medway from Maid-
stone to Aylesford-bridge ; but as this was for im-
proving an old navigation, and also a river oiie, I
forbear giving the particulars. .

Stover Canai..

The length of this navigation, from the tide-way
of the river Teign, near Newton Abbots, is to New-
ton Bushel one mile, and to Bovey Tracey 5^ miles,
with 50 feet rise- To Chudleigh, the same distance,
and a rise of 20 feet ; and in its course communicates

262 INtANP NAVIGATION.

with a valuable coal-mine, and several excellent clay-
pits. It commences at the navigable part of the
river Teign, six miles from the port of Teignmoiuh,
Devonshire, and terminates at the great road leading
from Chudleigh to Ashburton, near which town, and
some othejp in that vicinity, it is to be continued ;
by which means Morton and other parts will be sup-
plied with manure at an easy rate, particularly lime
and sea sand.

As this canal ends within a few miles of the forest
of Dartmore, extending the canal to that uncul-
tivated tract may be well worthy notice ; and if it
should be thought advisable to be carried into exe-
cution, the whole of that uncultivated district may
be easily supplied with manure and all the necessaries
to a cultivated country ; returning as back- carriage,
stone, minerals, grain, &c, to be shipped at Teign-
mouth for distant markets.

The importance of this canal is inferior to none.
By it the various potteries of Staffordshire, and the
whole kingdom, will be supplied with the most va-
luable clay for their manufactories, the demands for
which are daily augmenting since the spirited exer-
tions of the proprietor of the canal has so much re-
duced the distance and rate of carriage ; heretofore,
not half the quantity wanted by the potteries could
be obtained. By return of the clay ships, the whole'
country is well supplied with coals.

This canal has been executed under the direction
of Mr. Gray, of Exeter, in J 7.02. The great ad-
vantage of obtaining manure at a cheap rate, has been
so amply experienced by the neighbouring land-
owners, that the proprietor has experienced the most
fatisfactory testimonies of having imparted a lasting

IKLAND NAVIGATION. 283

■

benefit to his neighbours, who have all beert forward
to accommodate this undertaking ; particularly Lord
Courtney, who, with a liberality worthy his rank,
has granted permission for the canal to go through
some extensive grounds belonging to his lordship.

The whole of this canal, and nearly all the ground
through which it passes, belongs to James Templer,
esq- of Stover Lodge, Devon ; has been executed
at his entire charge ; and is an example of what may
be done by an individual, who deems the prosperity
.of bis neighbour, the advancement of commerce, and
the good of his country — objects worthy his study
and attention,

Sankey Canal.

This canal leads from the coal-pits at St, Hellen*s,
pear Prescot, to connect with Liverpool by the river
Mersey, and was cut to convey coal to the latter
place. Near this canal are the large copper-works
of the Anglesea Company, and also the Lancashire
plate-glass-works. The length of the canal is 12
miles, with a fall of go feet. The act for making
this canal was obtained in 17^5, and from its date
;nust be allowed precedence to the noble undertaking
of the Duke of Bridge water in this line ; it empowers
the proprietors to render the brook called Sankey
Brook navigable ; but the advantages of a dead-water
navigation was then understood so well as to induce
the proprietors to make an entire new cut by the side
of the brook, and used it only for supplying the canal
with water. This canal was cut under the directioij
p£ Mr. Johi> Eyes, surveyor, Liverpool.

284 inland navigation.

Loughborough Canal. '

This canal begins with the junction of the rivers
Soar and Trent. The act was obtained in 1776, and
empowers the company to make the river Soar na-
vigable to Bishop's Meadow, in the liberty of Ga-
renton, and from ihence to cut a canal to the Rushes
at Loughborough, Leicestershire.

This canal commences at the river Soar, a little
below Gracedieu Brook, and takes a straight course
to the Rushes at Loughborough ; it is about one mile
long, and level. This navigation, although so short,
has been found very beneficial to the inhabitants of
Loughborough, as it brings a regular supply of coal
at a cheap rate, and, by means of the river Soar, it
enjoys a regular connection with the Trent, and by that
river with 'all the various sind important canals in the
interior of the kingdom ; and by the late improved
navigations to Leicester, Melton Mowbray, &c.

Cromford Canal to Langley Bbidge.

This canal begins at Cromford, runs a great way
parallel with the river Derwent, and passes Critcli
Frithley, Tod Moor, Heage, Hartey, Lescoe, Hey-
nor, and joins the Erwash canal at Langley-bridge,
Derbyshire, whicli canal falls into the Trent near
Nottingham.

The total length from Cromford to the junction is
14 miles, of which the first 1 1 are level, and the
other three miles have a fall of 80 feet. There is a
collateral cpt to some coal- works, of three miles, and
level ; besides several small tunnels, there is one oa
this canal of 3,000 yards long. Coal-mines abound
in the neighbourhood of this canal, and are of great
service to it.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 285

DONNINOTON-WOOD CaNAL»

This canal, the private property of the Marquis
of Stafford, and John and Thomas Gilberts, esquires^
was cut in 1778 ; it is six miles in length, and level.
It begins at Donnington-wood iron-works, in the
parish of Lillishall, and proceeds to Paved Line near
Newport, all in the county of Shropshire : its use is
principally for conveying iron-stone, lime- stone, and
other raw materials, to the iron-works at Donnington-
wood.

The boats are of 25 tons burthen.

Ketley Canal.

This canal was cut 1789, and is the private pro-
perty of Messrs. W. Reynolds and Co. It com-
mences at the Shropshire canal, at a place called
Oaken Gates, and proceeds to Ketley iron -works, of
which the above gentlemen are owners. The length
of the canal is 14* mile, with a fall of 67 feet to Ket-
ley ; whiofe' is managed by a small lock of one foot
lift, and an inclined plane 66 feet perpendicular
height. It is proper here to say, this machine is the
first constructed for use in England, and answers
the intended expectations well, the loaded boats
drawing up the empty ones. Much merit is certainly
due to the person who first, by experience, shewed
both the practicability and the eligibility of an un-
usual machine ; \t is but justice to record the intro-
duction of so useful a contrivance. To this canal
there must have been seven or eight locks, which
would have cost a great sum of money ; and water
for their supply perhaps more, for at this time water
is so valuable, that what necessarily passes into th^
lower canal as boats are let down, is reserved in a

aSG INLAND NAVIGATION.

well^ and thrown back again by a small fire-engine i
indeed the construction . of this short canal shews
certain marks of a superior genius.

The principal use of this canal is to convey coal,
iron-stone, and raw materials, to the Ketley iron*
works. — ^The boats carry about eight tons.

Shropshire Canal.

The act for this canal was granted in 1788. It
has the following course : Beginning at the Don-
nington-wood canal, in the parish of Lillishall, by
Kockwardine Wood, Oaken Gates, HoUingswood,
Stirchley, Madeley, the Hay, and into the Severn
at Sheep-wash Meadow, two miles below Coalbrooke
Dale. Its length is 72 miles ; and the fall and rise is
457 feet ; the whole of which is managed by three
inclined planes : — the first, at Donnington-wood, is
a perpendicular ascent of 122 feet; the length of
the acclivity is 320 yards : — the second, at Stirchley,
is a perpendicular descent of 1 26 feet ; the length of
the declivity is 586 yards : — the third, at the Hay,
is a perpendicular descent of 207 feet ; the length of
the declivity is 300 yards. The machinery to the
inclined planes is wprked by a steam-engine. It has
been said that the inclined plane on the Ketley
canal was on a small scale, but those on this canal
are sufficiently large to justify its general adoption as
a very useful invention.

There is a collateral cut from this canal, at South-
well Bank, near Stirchley, utiicli goes by Dawlcy
and Lightmoore, to the head of Coalbrooke Dale.
From the termination, the cargoes are lowered
through perpendicular shafts or tunnels ten feet
diameter, and 120 feet deep, to the rail- ways below.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 287

iB^hich lead to Coalbrooke Dale iron-works, and the
river Severn at Load Croft, and other wharfs in
that neighbourhood : also, from the iron-works at
Horse Hay, there is a rail-way which communicates
with this canal.

This canal, with its connections, is very useful in
conveying the raw materials to the many large fur-
naces in the vicinity, and for conveying their heavy
manufactured articles to the wharfs and the Severn, ,
whence they are dispersed to distant parts. Tlic
boats carry about 8 tons.

Nov. 1 80C. Remarks 9tt the Progress of Canalt*
The Shropshire canal ought to be more productive.

Experience has confirmed the great advanta-
ge^ arising from canals in a commercial country,
which, with the increased state of the Manufactures
^nd Trade of this country, have brought to maturity,
within the space of two years only, Acts of Parlia-
ment for 36 new schemes for canals ; which, with
other bills for extending and amending rivers, &c.
make 47 Acts in that period relative to the inland
navigation of this country.

And it is worthy of observation, that the great
sums of money engaged in this concern within the
before mentioned period, is immense ; amounting to
the enormous sum of 5,200,000/. ! And the more
it is contemplated the better it appears ; and wlmr
is most pleasing is, that the whole amount is ex-
pended in our own country, and among oi:r own
countrymen ; and that chiefly among the laborious
and industrious poor : many of whom must be
constantly engaged in attending on these various

288 INLAND NAVIGATION.

works, and their concerns. The prospect is stiil
more flattering in another point of view^ for from so
large a capital expended in this country, great profits
must arise to our merchants and artisans, and to the
whole of those countries which these inland navi-
gations pass.

Inland navigation is now proved to be a nuisery to
the navy ; this was pointed out in the introduction to
this history. It cannot be thought this instance of
the general benefit arising from canal navigation either
trifling or unimportant, viewing the safety and pros-
perity of this most favoured island with the anxiety^
affection, and zeal of a true Briton.

Babnslet Canal.

In the 33 Geo. III. an act was obtained for this
canal, which joins the river Calder below the town of
Wakefield, Yorkshire, and passes Crofton, Pelkirk,
Royston, and thence to Barnsley, whence it makes
a bend to Barnby Bridge, near the town of Cow-
thorn : it is 14 miles long. There are several rail-
ways to the canal from Barnsley, and also from
Barnby Bridge. The fall from the junction with the
Dearne and Dove canal, is 120 feet to the river
Calder.

The proprietors have the necessary powers for
making the canal, &c. The breadth of which with
towing-path, &c. is 24 yards ; and not to deviate
more than 100 yards from the line laid down, nor
'■more than 20 yards in making the rail- ways. The
soil, &c. dug in making the canal, to be levelled on
the adjoining ground in a proper manner. ^

The proprietors are allowed to raise 72,000 /. to be

INLANB NAVIGATION. £89

divided inta 100 /. shares^ and to raise 25>00O/» more
if necessary.

Exemption from rates. All dung, soil, marl, ashes
of coal, and turf, anc) all other manure (except
lime) for the improvement of adjoining lands. All
materials for making or repairing any public or
private roads (except flag-stones, curb-stones, or
causeway-stones) under the usual restrictions.

In order to prevent any inconvenience to the in-
habitants of Warmfield, from the smoke of the
steam-engine, intended to be erected on Heath Com*
mon, for the purpose of supplying the canal with
water ; the said engine is to be so constructed that
in working it will burn or consume its own smoke.

Basingstoke Cakal.

The act passed this session, 33 Geo. III. enables
the proprietors of this canal to raise either by loan,
or by annuities, 6o,000 /. in addition to the 126,D00/.
before raised, to finish the canal.

Nov. 1802. Rimarh on the Prognsi of Canalu

The Basingstoke canal is improvingi but until it forms a junction
with some more profiuhle branch it is not likely to succeed to any
parties but the public.

Caistor Canal.

In this revision of 33 Geo. III. an act passed for
this canal to join the river Ancholme, in the parish
.of South Kelsey ; and in a direct line proceed to the
tpwn of Oustor, Lincolnshire, being about 9 miles.

The canal, towing-path, &c. is in breadth 22
yards. The company are empowered to raise 1 5,000/.
to be divided into lOO/. shares, and to rais^ 10,000/.
more, if wanted.

2^0 ' JNI/AND XrATIOATIOJf.

Exemption from Tolls. Officers, or soldiers on their
march, with their horses, arms, baggage, &c. timber^
or stores for the use of his majesty. All gravel, sand^
&c. for making or repairing public roads ; also all
kinds of manure for the adjoining lands ; but not to
pass any lock unless the water flows over it, nor vcf-»
sels under 20 tons to pass any lock without leave, or
paying for that tonnage.

The use of this canal is chiefly local, but shews
that the public begin to know that water carriage \i
more advantageous than land carriage.

Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation*

The intent of this act, which was also obtained in
the 33 Geo. Ill, is to make the river Chelmer navig-
able, by widening, deepening, &c. and making new
cuts where necessary, as far as Beely Mill near Mal-
don, Essex, where by means of a cut the navigation
leaves the river Chelmer, and crosses into the river
Blackwater ; down this river it proceeds about 4- of a
mile to Hey-bridge, from whence another cut con-
tinues the navigation to Colliers- reach, 1^ mile below
Maldon ; there is a branch to Maldon^ with a bason.

The length of this canal is 1 3 miles 5 furlongs, in
which about 10 miles of the old channel is preserved ;
the rest is new cut. The fall from Chelmsford is
79 i feet-

The proprietors are empowered to purchase, dig,
enter, he. and the usual restrictions not to incom-
mode the mills : nor to deviate nfiore than 100 yards
from the line laid down. The canal, towing-path,
&c. is 40 yards. Besides, the proprietors may raise
t 40,000/. at 100/. shares each,* and further wm of
20,000 /. more if necessary.

XHI.AKD NATIOATION. 2Q1

By this navigation the inhabitants of Chelmsford,
«od the neighboiu'ing country, will be materially
accommodated, by a cheap carriage for coal. And the
fitrmers will be benefited by their corn being shipped
tor the London market at a trifling expense ; for in-
stead of theif teams going 12 miles in very bad
toads, they may now be employed at home. The
exceptions from rates and tolls as usual.

An addition is wanted to this canal to carry it
through the Rodings to Dunmow.

Nov. 1 80?. Remarks on tie Progress of Canals.

The Chelmer canal shares, we believe, are not worthtcarcelj 5/»
tach.

Derby Canal.

The act for this canal was obtained 33 Geo. III.
It begins at the Trent, and running through the
village of Swarkstonc, joins the Trent and Mersey, or
Grand Trunk Canal, and at one furlong eastward,
eoraniences its course through Sinfin Moor, between^
Boulton and Osihaston, to the east side of Derby,
where it crosses the river Derwent ; from Derby, the
cut to join the Erewash canal takes its course easterly,
and passes Chaddesden, Spoodcn, Burrowash, Brc-
aston, and joins the Erewash canal between Lqng
Eaton and Sandiacre; from Derby to the North,
there is a cut to Little Baton, with rail-ways to Smal-
ley mills, and Smithey houses.

The length of tfcis canal from the Grand Trunk
to Derby, is b\ miles, with la feet rise. From
Derby to the Erewash canal is S^- miles, with a fall
%Q feet. From Derby to Little Eaton is 3^ miles,
with 17 feet rise. The length of the principal rail*

2^2 IShklxn NAriGATIOK.

way to Smithey houses is 4^ miles, and to Smalley
mills is 1 1 miles. The whole length of the canal is
17 miles, and 38 feet lockage.

The company of proprietors have the usual powers
of purchasing land, &c. and to make other rail- ways
at future times. One to be made to Horsley Colliery^
if Lord Chesterfield shall desire it ; also owners of
lands, mines, &c. may make railways to join the
canal. Restrictions and regulations are fully made
for passage boats, and regulating the water from and
to the Trent, the Grand Trunk, the mills on the

river Derwent and this canal ; and the locks :are to
be go feet long, and 1 5 feet wide in the clear.

The land for the canal, towing-path, &c. is 26
3rards in breadth ; and may be wider for docks, bason,
deep cutting, or embanking; but not to fleviate
above 100 yards from the line laid down.

The company are authorised to raise 6o,000/.
divided into lOO/. shares, and liberty to raise
30,000/. more, if wanted.

The Derby canal company are to permit 5000 tons
of coals annually to go free of all rates, for the use
of the poor of that town ; and three members of the
corporation, and the same number of proprietors to
be chosen annually to distribute them.

Exemption of gravel, manure, &c. for lands, roads,
&c. as usual.

The dividends of profit of this canal are not to
exceed 8 per cent, the surplus to be applied to form
a bank of 4000 /. to answer all emergencies ; which
done, the rates to be lowered, so as not to divide
more than 8 per cent.

A cut is to be made by the Derby Canal company
at Weston Cliff, to join the Trent with the Grand

INLAND KAVIGATIOir. 2Q3

Trunk, if desired by the owners of the lime-works at
Bnidon, in Leicestershire ; provided a canal or rail-*
way shall be made from the lime- works to the
Trent.

If the Derby canal cause a loss of the tolls on the
Mansfield Road, under four per cent, the company
oblige themselves to make the same good to the
trust.

And as it is expected this canal will hurt the profits
of the Derwent navigation, this company are autho--
rized to buy the same, for 3,Qg6 L and to exercise
similar rights, &c. as the former owners.

The advantages of this canal will be wonderfully
beneficial to the town of Derby, where fuel is in
great demand ; this article will be well supplied by
the Cromford and Erewash- canals, and some coaU
pits near Derby ; where also is a plentiful supply of
iron-stone, which must lie useless to the owners un-
less a cheap conveyance to a market qan be had^
which this canal will afiford,

Dearns and Dove Canla^l.

The act for this canal was procured in 33 Geo. IlL
It begins from the cut which has been made to ac-
commodate the river Dqn navigation, between Swin-
ton and Mexbrough, and goes by Wath, WombwcU,
and Ardsley, to near Barnsley, in the West Riding
of Yorkshire ; there to form a junction with the
Barnsley canal, which joins the river Calder. There
are two small branches, one parallel with Knolbeck
Brook, to the iron -works at Cobcar Ing, the other
along the head stream of the river Dove, to Wors-
brough Bridge ; with a proposed extension of tl^e
branch near \\ nA% fanher, to Rockliff:e Bridge,

ag4 INXAND NAVIGATION.

adjoining the grounds of Earl Strafford, at Wentworth
Castle.

The length of this canal from the union with the
river Dun, to Barnsley, is Qf miles, with 125 ftet
rise. The branch to Cobcar Ing is 1 J- miles, and
level. The branch to Worsbrough Bridge is on©
mile five furlongs in length.

The proprietors have the usual powers for making
canals : and are not to deviate more than 100 yards
from the line : there are also particular restrictions
for preserving water in rivers and brooks, by gaugo
weirs, tumbling bays, &c. for the security of mills,
&c. The two wells in the town of Barnsley are not
to be injured. No water to be taken from the
Cobcar Ing branch, to injure Earl Fitzwilliam-s
estate or grounds ; nor to the injury of Earl Straf-
ford.

The breadth allowed is 27 yards. Owners of mines
may make rail-ways to join the canal, but not at
above 1,000 yards distance from the canal, except at
Wath, where 2,000 yards arc permitted. Other
collateral cuts may be niade to mines, either by the
company or land-owners.

The company are allowed to raise 66,000 /; di-
vided into 100 /. shares ; arid may raise 30,000 /. more
if wanted. A deed or certificate for each share is
to be given, under the common seal of the company,
which shall entitle, &c. the possessor.

Exemption as usual, gravel, dung, and all manures
for the improvement of adjoining lands ; as also for
coals and turf, but to pass no lock unless the water
flows over.

The union of this with the Barnsley canal, at
Barnsley, is to be level. At or within 150 yards of-

INLAND NAVieATIOK, flQS

the junction, shall be erected at the companies joint
expense, a stop lock, with gates, &c. to prevent
either canal from suffering by want of water in the
other canal ; the water at no time Is to be lower than
four feet six inches, on either of the sills of the lock;
but if it ever should be so, the keeper of the other
canal may stop the passage, till it shall be of that
height. And, to preserve at all times the navigation,
between Barnby Bridge and the Dearne and 0ovc
canal, a stop-gate shall be erected> and constantly
kept in repair at their joint expense/ so as to prevent
loss of water from the head level. All the locks on
this canal are to be of a size to admit boats, &c. such
as those commonly used on the river Dun. The
company are obliged to keep four feet six inches
water upon the sills of the locks on the whole line of
the can^l constantly; and no boats less than 30
tons to pass the locks, or to pay that tonnage.

This canal in union with the Barnsley canal will
be of immense importance to the trade of the West
Riding of Yorkshire ; by a short trip of 20 miles, the
Calder and Dun navigations are joined, and many
mines of coal, iron, &c. on the line will be accom-
roodated with a cheap and .certain carriage for their
heavy produce ; which will enable them to sell at a
low price^ which will encourage both domestic a^d
foreign Consumption. And the variety of articles
that may be expected to be carried on this canal, may
be conjectured from the variety of articles mentioned
in the table of rates, which is too long to be her«
enumerated.

•r*

296 iklano navigation.

Duplet Extension Canal.

The act for this canal was also obtained in 33 Geti.
III. It joins the Dudley canal near Netherton, and
piaking a bend round the high ground/ comes to
Windmill-end, and then passes through Combes
Wood, by Hales Owen, at the foot of the celebrated
Leasowes ; soon after it enters a long tunnel, and pro-
ceeds by Weoley Castle to Sclly Oak, Worcestershire,
where it joins the canal now making from Birming*
bam to Worcester, being in length 10 miles and 5
furlongs, and level. There is a short tunnel near
Combes Wood of 17 chains, but that beyond Hales
Owen is nearly two miles long. There are two col-
lateral cuts from the canal at Windmill-end, to-
wards Dudley, with 64 feet fall.

The act authorising this canal begins by reciting
certain clauses of the Dudley canal acts. 1 6, 25,
and 30 Geo. III. names the new subscribers, and
joins them with the old Dudley company, giving
them similar powers and regulations. This is there-
fore only an extension of the Dudley canal; and
this company are compelled to purchase the other
proprietors shares, if they wish to part with them.
The canal not to deviate more than 100 yards from
the line proposed. No water to be taken from the
rivers Rea and Stowr, and certain rivulets. Nor
any water for this canal to be taken from any of the
supplies of the Birmingham and Fazeley canal.
Owners of fire-engines may take water firom this
canal.

The company are empowered to raise go,000 /. to
be divided into shares of 100 /. each ; and 40,000/.
more may be raised, if wanted.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 207

The Worcester and Birmingham canal company
have agreed, that when any reduction of th^ usual .
rates for navigating the Worcester and Birmingham
canal shall take place, a like reduction shall be made
on goods, &c. passing on this canal, except such al
go towards Birmingham. Then follows a very long
list of rates and tolls, tonnage and wharfage, which
is useless to the generality of readers.

A stop lock is to be erected within 500 yards of
the Worcester and Birmingham canal to prevent loss
of water, and to be stopped, if not kept level on
fboth canals.

If by reason of making this canal, the profits of
the Stourbridge canal shall be reduced below 12 J.
each share, this canal company must make up all
deficiencies, so as they do not exceed 3 /. per share,
and they shall in the same year, • receive by their
rates 5 /. per share. The Worcester and Birmingham
canal company are exonerated from that clause
which makes them liable to make up any deficiency
to the Dudley canal company.

This extension, of the Dudley canal must be con-
sidered as a rival scheme to the Old Birmingham
canal, which has long enjoyed a beneficial monopoly;
and the Old Birmingham shares have decreased in
value since this canal has been carried into exe-
cution.

' Ellesmere Canal.

The act of this canal was obtained in 34 Geo TIL
It joins the Severn on the north side of Shrewsbury,
at Bagley-bridge, and taking a north course, passes
Newton, Walford, Baschurch, Weston, Lulling-
field, and Hordley ; here a cut branches to Ulany-
roynech town and lime-works, being 12 miles; t\\c

SQS IK LAND NAVIGATION.

canal theo pf||^ Francton Common, from whence
the WhhckiH'ch branch commences, and passes
Ellesmere, Welchampton, Whitchurch, and finishes
at Frees Heath ; thi^cut is 14 miles long ; the canal
is then continued and passes the Ridges, Old Mar*
tin, crosses the river Morlas, andsoon after the river
Ceriog, then it proceeds near to Chirk Castle, and
crosses the river Dee at Pontoysyllte, Jpy a noble
aqueduct ; it then goes on to Rhuabon, Newhall,
Bcrsham, Wre:jtham, from whence Bfombo* branch
proceeds, which is 3^ miles j it then passes Gres-
ford, whence a branch of four miles goes to Hfolt s
from thence it passes Pulford in a direct line, and
Leach Hall, and crossing the river Dee, passes on the ,
west side of Chester, and then by Backford, Chorl-
ton Crougbton, Stoke, Stanney, Whetby, and there
joins the river Mersey, being 57 miles long, with
537 feet lockage, which I shall particularly describe,
in order to shew what may be done when neither
hills, valleys, and rivers obstruct, nor interest and
advantage are concerned. From the junction with
the Severn at Bagley Bridge to Newton, is l { mile,
with 1 10 feet rise ; from thence to Francton Com-
. mon is 15^ miles,, and level "; thence to Nevvmartin
Common is 3 J miles, with 42 feet rise; thence to
the river Dee is eight miles, and level \ directly
from thence is 75 feet rise, in half a mile; thence
to the Brombo' branch is 8-j- miles, and level, and
the summit; thence to Chester is li^ miles, and
390 feet f^l ; from thence to the Mersey is eight
niilcs.

The Llanymypech branch is la miles, with %X
feet fall.

The Whitchurch branch is 1 4 mil^s,

iKLAKtr KAVIOATION. 299

The Brombo' branch is 34 miles, and level, '

The Holt branch is four miles^, and level.

The Dee will be crossed by a noble aqueduct of
seven arches, of 130 feet high, and 350 feet long;
besides vast embanking ; the ascent on the Welsh
side is by three locks, and the descent on the Chester
side is by four locks.

In the course of the canal there ara two tunnels,
one at Weston Lulling-field, 2 furlongs and 47
yards; the pthcr near Chifk, of 3 furlongs and 115
yards. •

The proprietors have the usual powers for making
the canal and branches, not to deviate more than
*100 yards from the line. No water to betaken from
the rivers Perry and Belan, nor the Dee between
Chester and the Mersey, but may use all springs
and brooks within two miles, except as above. The
breadth of the canal, &c. 24 yards.

The proprietors are allowed to raise 400,000 /.
and 50,000/. more, if wanted* Their shares to be
iooL each, and no person to hive more than JO
votes.

The na^'igation to be open from 7 to 5 in the
Jnonths of November, December, January, and
February, and 5 to 7 in March, April, September,
and October, and from 4 to 9 in May, June, July,
August. No boat to pass any lock without leave, op
not 60 feet long and 12 feet wide, or less than. 3Q
tons burden, or two boats 60 feet by 7 feet, and of
thirty tons together, and pass at the same time, ex-
cept in such parts of the canal as are made fco: boats
of seven feet beam only and of 18 tons burthen.

For securing the river Dee navigation, that part
of the canqil which runs through the grounds of thgt

30Q INtAKD KATIGATIOXI.

company is to be cut by them, but to ha paid by
the other company. If by means of this canal the
Dee's company shdl not yearly amount to 210/. it
is to be made good by this canal company. The
Chester water-works are indemnified from injury, and
no water to be taken from Finchett*s Gutter, except
flood-water. The tolls of the Liverpool corporation
are not to be affected. The company are empowered
to extend the Whitchurch branch so as to form a

^ . junction with the Chester canal at a place called
Crow's Nest in Tattenhall, but not without the land
owner's consent ; this branch will go by Malpas and
HarthilL When this junction is formed the waste

n water of the Chester canal may be taken for the uso
of this canal.

^ The Llanymynech branch may be extended to

Marda Bridge, near Oswestry, with consent of land

* owners. This branch is suspended till the report of

-^^ , Messrs. Dadford and Jessop, engineers, is obtained^
but within two years.

6 The line of this canal is through a country abound-

ing with slate, lime, coals, and other minerals, which,
for want of water carriage, have hitherto lain dor^
' inant, but will now appear worthy of notice, and
employ the labourer and mechanic. An inland na-t
vigation from the Bristol Channel to the Irish Sea
will be completed by this canal, and Bristol and
Liverpool will be, as it were, united, so that locally
or commercially the benefits appear to be of the
utmost importance.

Of the local benefits from Shrewsbury to Oswestry,
the country having been supplied with coal and lime
by land carriage, at a great distance and expense;
the lianymynech branch will supply fuel> limc> and

INLAND KATiaATION* 301

■'-:

• t

* >

alate for the counties of Mbntgomery, Chester and
Salop. The Brombo' branch will supply Mr.
Wilkinson*s iron works, which are of the utmost im*
portance to this nation, and I may say to Europe.
Bersham smelting works will be greatly accommo-
dated, and must benefit the consumers, and the corn
trade is very extensive. The Worral part from '/';
Chester to the Mersey now promises to realise all \

expectations ; a daily passage boat from Chester to ";

Liverpool will be established, to the ease and comfort
of the inhabitants of both towns and the intermediate
country. This part of the canal is intended for
vessels of 14 feet beam ; the other parts for only 7
feet beam. A vast number of men are employed,
and the work goes on amazingly rapid.

Not, 180?, Rimarkt ott the Progress of Canals.

The Ellesmert canal, a discount of 20 /• It is a most tedious work,
but will succeed.

River Foss Navigatioj^,

The act for this navigation was granted 33 Geo.
IIL It proceeds from the union of the river Foss
with' the river Ouse at York city, and continues with
the river Foss to Farlington common, thence by a
new cut to the lordship of Marton, and from that
place to deepen^ widen, &c. the river Foss to Stil-
Jington mill ; the length near 1 3 miles. The powers
are the same with other canal companies. A reser-
voir may be made on Oulston Moor, and the breadth
allowed for the canal and rivers are 30 yards. The
company are allowed to raise 25,400/. to be divided
into 1 00 /. shares^ and they may raise 1 0,000 /• more
if wanted.

SOI I!QrLAN0 NAVlGAtr<W;

The ^rincipd use of this act appears to be intended
fbr draining the low grounds on each side of the
riVer Foss ; and commissioners are appointed with full
powers for making drains, sewers, &c« and to compel
payment for the same^ as well as the rates^ and ad*
jtist land claims^

GlOucbsteh and B£RRL£y Canal;

The act for this canal was obtained 33 Geo. Ill;
It joins the Severn at a brook called Berkley PiU,
opposite the town of Berkley, from whence in a
straight line it passes Slimbridge, Frarapton, Weat-
enhurst, (where it intersects the Stroud cahal) Hard-
wick^ QvLtd^tyy and terminates on the south side of
the city of Gloucester, being ISA mileSi A short
tut is made to the town of Berkley, and the whole
is level \ there are locks at each end to presence the
water.

The company have the usual powers for ihaking
the canal, which is 70 feet- wide, and 15 feet deep,
and always kept properly cleansed, so as at all times
to admit vessels of 300 tons burthen arid Upwards to
navigate uninterruptedly. The breadth of ground
allowed is 70 yards. Thirty-eight years purchase it
to be given for the land Wanted for the canal.

The company are allowed to raise 140,000/. to be
divided into 100 /. shares, aiid no person to hold
above 30 shares, unless by will or act of law ; they
have also liberty to raise 6o,6oo/, tnore if \vanted;
And before the canal is begun the comipafty are to
deposit 5,000 /. in the hands of four trustees, who are
to lodge it in the Bank of England, to answer any
demands for damages that may be incurred.

ISftANfi NAVlGAl^Iof^. 303

Exemption from rates^ all manures for land, and
gravel or stones for roads, as usual.

The company are to make' and keep in repair a
wharf at the end of the cut at Berkley ; the whar-
fage to belong to the land owner of the wharf ; but
if goods are landed there the company are to receive
their just rates.

No water is to be taken from the Stroudwatct
canal, nor Stroudwater river, nor from any springs
that supply the same ; and to prevent loss of water
from the Stroud canal^ gates are to be erected where
the canals intersect each other.

No dues to be taken for boats crossing either
canaU, and a gate-keeper is to be appointed. Five
guineas per day are to be paid by this company to
the Stroudwater company if their navigation is stopped
by any works doing on this canal ; and also a com-
pensation for any interruption to the Thames and
Severn companies of two-thirds of loss per day, to
be averaged from the six preceding months. One
month's notice to be given if such interruption is in-
tended, and to be advertised in the Bristol and
Gloucester news-papers.

This canal for magnitude and accommodations
must be allowed of the first consequence, from its
admitting vessels of 300 tons burthen, uniting the
city of Gloucester to the port of Bristol, by a cheap,
certain, and easy water-carriage, thereby becoming
a material object to trade. The whole of this vast
scheme, which can be known only in a free country,
shews an ardour of enterprise, which none but a^
industrious and commercial people could sustain.

By this canal tlie vpyage may easily be performed
in one day, whereas to get to Gloucester by the tivcr^

S04 INLAND NAVteATION.

though only ten miles more^ was the wofk of many
days. ^

Grand Junction Canal*

The act, or rather acts of this magnificent and
wonderful undertaicing, were obtained 33 and 34
Geo. III. It is proper to describe its course parti*
cularly, as it unites so great a length of interior coun*
try so near to the metropolis. This canal begins at
Braunston, in Northamptonshire, on the borders of
Warwickshire, and at the extremity joins the Ox-
ford canal. From Braunston it passes a tunnel,
and its course is between Welton and Daventry, with
a cut one mile and half to the latter place, leaving
Long Breckby to the left, passes through Weedon,
by Lower Heyford, Bugbrook,' to Gayton, where
it goes off by a cut 5 miles to Northampton. From
Gayton it passes Blisworth, and through a tunnel to
Stoke, then passes Grafton and Cosgrove, a little
brfow which a branch goes off to Stoncy- Stratford,
of one mile and half; below this is the junction of
the river Ouse, which it crosses, then passes Great
Dinford, and is distant from Newport Pagnell aboiit
a mile ; it then passes Little and Great Wolston,
Woughton, Simpson, through the town of Penny
Stratford, by Stoke Hammond, Soulbury, Lins*
lade, Leighton Buzzard, Marsworth, Ivinghoe, Pit*
tleshom, Tring, one mile and half distant. Aid-
bury, Northchurch, close to Berkhampsted, Hemel,-
Hempsted, about a mile distant, King*s Langley,
whence, through a small tunnel, it goes by Grove
Park, and Cashiobury Park, to Rickmansworth, a
little before which a branch of two miles goes to
Watford ;- from Rickmansworth it runs parallel with

INLAl^D NAVIGATION, 305 .

the riter Colne, which it crosses several times, to
tJxbfidge ; from thence it goes by Cowley and Hil-
lingdoh> Draylort, Harlingford, Cranford Park, Nor-
wood and Osterfy Park, where, intersecting the river
Brent, it Falls into the Thames between Brentford and
Sibn House, completing a course of 90 miles, witli
796 feet lockage, and tlirough 3 tunnels.

The particular rises, falls, and distances may be
entertaining to the reader. From the junction with
the Oxford canal at Braunston, near a mile, is 37 feet
rise ; to above Whilton mill, and below the road
from Daventry to Long Buckby 44- miles, and level ;
'from thence, below the road froffi Daventry to Whil-
ton, is 5 furlongs 5 chains, and falls 60 feet ; thence
to Stoke 134- miles, and level; between Bliswortli
and Stoke is a tunnel l-J- mile long ; from Stoke to
the junction with the branch to Stratford is 64- miles^
and 1 1 2 feet fall ; thence to Marsworth above Tring
25 miles, and )Q2 feet rise: from thence to Cow
Roasts 3 J- miles, And level. . This is the highest level
in the whole course of the canal, being 28 feet liigher
ttian the tunnel at Braunston, and 400 feet Higher
tnan the level of the Thames, and regular descent.
From Cow Roast to two waters, near Hemel Hemp-
sted, is near 7. riiiles, and 12^ feet fall; thence to
Langley Bury 4J- miles, and level, including the
tunnel, which is not lialf a mile ; from thence to the

•

junction of the Tliames'near 24 miles, and 26S feet
Fall, of w'hic\i 60 feet is by the side gf Osterly Park 5
the cut to, Daventry has 60 feet rise. That to North-
ampton J 20 feet fall. That to Stratford has one
lock up, and ihe cut to Watford is leveL

The compfiny have the usual powers, and the
ground allov/ed is 20 yards, but where deep cutting.

305 INLAND KAVICSATlOSr*

warehouses, bason^^ &c* arc necessary, 45 yai*d«
may be taken. THc canal, as usual, is not to deviate
more than 100 yards from the fine laid down. If one
eighth of a mile be cut through, the land-owner may
be a proprietor, and have one share, but no one to
have more t^an 10 shares.

The towing-path through Ostcrly Lands, and
those of John Robinson, esq. the Duke of Northum-
berland, and James Clitherow, esq. is to be north,
north*east, and east side of the canal ; nor is any
water to be taken or diverted from those lands for the
use of the canal. Reservoirs are to be provided for
supplying the rivers Gade, Colne, and Bulbourne,
with the same quantity of water as may be taken from
those rivers for the use of the canal, as also to the
river Brent. The waste water from the summit at
Marsworth is to be conveyed southward, and not to
impede the navigation of the Brent, nor to interrupt
the owners of wharfs, warehouses, &c. who are not
to pay any rates or tolls of this canal, not even the
city duty of one halfpenny per ton. This exemption
to reach no further than from the Thames to Bax^s
mill, which mill also is not to be injured. The pipes
that supply water to Uxbridge and Hillington are not
to be damaged.

The water of the canal is to have no communication
with the river Colne from the point to Uxbridge ;
and the canal is to cross the Colne in aqueducts,
sufficiently high for the river to flow for the use of
the mills abov? the point. All surplus water between
Uxbridge and the Brent to be conve)rcd to Cranford
Brook. The canal is not to unite with the Colne
below Uxbridge, but to cross it by aqueducts; a
tumbling bay is to be erected above the point

}

tiJtXafD rirAviGrAfto*. 80f

to jtfeservc the water of the river Colne. No
water to be taken from the stream that su{)|)lie3
Smewne's Jmper mill at Soul bury, i/i Bucks; not
from anjr streams that flow into the Thames and Isid
above Dorchester bridge, unless the company re-
plenish the same from reservoirs. All the soil dug
out in the whole course of the canal, ^to be spread on
the adjoining gi'ounds at the expense of the company..

To complete this canal^ the company are em-
powered to raise 500,000 /. to be divided into shares
of 100 L each, for which i ticket, with thelkimbet
and also the common seal of the company, shall be
given, paying the clerk half a crown ; and if the,
first sum is not ^ufHcient, they arie allowed to raise
100,000/. more. On the second Tuesday in May
and Ncrvember annually, are to be two ^neral meet*
ings, at a place appointed by advertisement, whefl
a general comttiittee is to be chosen of 21 persons^
not having kss than five shares as a quafification i
and if other committees should be found necessary,
they are not to consist of less than nine persons. At
every general meeting, persons possessing. lOOoh
ahares to be present. Exemption from rates atnd tolls,
ofHcefrs and soldiers on their mnrch, with their
horses, arms, and baggage ; timber for the use of
his Majesty's navy, or any stores, &c. belonging to
the nasry or military service ; gravel for roads, and
manure for land.

The navigation to be free on pitying the rates, &c.
and open between the hours of seven and five in the
months of No\ember, December, January, and Feb- .
ruary ; and between the hours of five and seven in the
months of March, A pal, September, and October ;
and between the hours of four and nine in May^

308 MftAND NAVlOAtlOT^.

June, July, and August ; provided that no boat le$§
than 60 feet long, and 12 feet broad, or of 30 tons
burthen, do pass any lock without consent, or paying
for 30 tons, unless the water flows over the weir ; or
there not being sufficient depth of water in the locks,
to pay no more than the water will let them carry*
All fractions of a mile to be deemed a mile, but
fractions of a ton as quarters of ^ ton*

The making of this Grand Junction canal it is
apprehended will iqjure the Oxford canal company*
It is aghied, that if the tolls before nientioned do
not amount to 5,000 /. a year, after it shall be com-
pleted from the Oxford canal to Old Stratford, then
the deficiency of that sum shall be made good by
this company : and further, if it shall happen that
after this canal shall be completed from the Oxford
canal to the river Thames, or after the first of Janu-
ary 1804, the rates above-mentioned shall not pro-
duce to the Oxford canal company 10,000/. a year,
the deficiency of such sum shall be made good by
this company within three months after the year is
expired, provided the Oxford canal company keep
their canal always in good condition.

The toll of one halfpenny per ton due to the city
of London upon all vessels navigated on the Thames
westward of London, is to be collected by this canal
company in addition to all other tolls, on all vessels
going into or out of this canal ; and the said compiny
are to pay to the city of London, for the better im-
provement of the river Thames, an additional rate of
t)ne halfpenny per ton upon all goods that shall pass
into or out of this canal. And it is further enacted,
that if the said halfpenny toll to the city of London,
and the additional halfpenny toll granted by this act,
shall not tutiount to 200 /• from the 30th of April

INLAND* NAV2GATI02ft 309

17^, to Midsummer lygs, and to SOO/. in 17 96;
aod to 600/. in 17Q7> and to700A in 1798» aud to
800/. in 1799> and to 900/. in 1800, and to 1,000/.
in 1801, and the same every subsequent year, the
company are to make good the above several sums.

No coals, culm, or cinders are to be brought by
this canal nearer to London than the mouth of the
tunnel at Langley-Bury, on the penalty of 500 /.

By the act of 34 Geo. III. chap. 24. the Grand
Junction canal company are authorised to make . a
gut from the town of Buckingham to join th^ branch
of the canal at Old Stratford, and also another cut
firom Aylesbury to join the canal at Marswortb,
which is two miles above Tringi and likewise to
make navigable the cut or feeder' from the town of
Wendover, to join the canal at Bulbourne, one nnile
above Tring, with all the powers of the first act of
33 Geo. in,

Mr. Sheppard, of Thornton, Bucks, or the occu-
pier, is permitted to use pleasure boats, and to pass
the locks at Thornton Mill near adjoining, without
paying any rates of tonnage.

The further regulations of the act respecting the
managing of the company's affairs, proxies, meet-
ings, claims, forfeitures, transfer or sale of shares,
&c. &c, &c. being useless to the generality of
readers, is consequently omitted.

In describing the route of this canal I have been
more particular than usual, as well from the great
advantages expected from it, as from the number of
land-owner^ and proprietors concerned in it, and also
from the great interest the city of London will have
in it; its course is altogether through countries well
cultivated and populpir ; many and great are the

310 tlU'AJFA KAVIOAT^Oif.

»dvantAgei to be tss/pc&t^d ffom it, as w^l in the
neighbourhood of it^ cpitrae as to the metropoli'^^
The various and valuable produce of a can^fd go miles
in length through the heart of the kingdom, will
doubtless produce imusruafl benefHs to the inhabitants
of I^opdtJp and Wcstr»in«er.

Nov. 1 ^Oi.'rrrRfm4f^h OK the frogrest of Canah.
The Qrand Juoction oinal fluctaates as usual. The shares of
lOO /. have been as high as 210 /. and as low as 6'5 K they are nonr
^t 150 /. Want of water is the present compUint. Its extension ta
the Thames will be liable to Qii^ph daspu8&}aO| but it qiust finallf
fakeplaqr, ,

Ab act relative to the Grand Junction can^l was
obtained 24th March i 803^ for amendingi altering,
and enlarging the powers of six Acts of Geot II1«

Whereas by an act, passed in the 33d year of the
reign of his present Majesty King George the Third,
intituled > An act for tp^king and maintaining a na-
vigable canal from the O^^ford canal navigation at
3raunston, in the county of Northampton, to join
the river Thames at or near Brentford, in the county
of Middlesex, and also certain collatend cuts from
the said intended can^l, certain persons therein
, named were incorporated by the naine ;and style
of The Company of proprietors of the Grand Junc-r
tion Canal, for making the said canal and collateral
cuts, and the several other works peccssary for carry-
ing the said act into execution, and were thereby
authorised to raise certain suii^s of money therein
mentioned towards defraying the expenses thereof :
and whereas by several qther acts passed in the 34th,
35th, 36th, 38th, and 4 1st years of the reign of
his present Majesty^ certain pQwefs and authorities

IKtAND NAVIGATtOK, SU

^Ci;?' g(40t^4 to the said proprietors for eoabliog them
ib make certain collateral' cuts from or out of the
faSd canal, and for * executing other work's therein
inentionei^, and also for raising several further sums
of money for dischatging the debts of the said com-
pany^ and &r completing the s^d canal and collateral
cuts ; which said several siiins of money have been
raised and expended in discharge of the debts owing
by the said company^ and in the execution of the
$everal works before mencipned : and whereas the
several communications from Braunston to London',
and part of the collateral' communications by the
said rqcited acts authorised to be made, have beetl
completed, together with such wharfs. Warehouses,
and other works, at Paddingtoni as are therein di-
rected, for the accommodation of the public trading
upon and using the same : ' and whereas it has been
represented to the said ^ompany of proprietors, that
by executing a tunnel, fn addition to the rail road at
Blisworth already cornpleted, and by constructing an
aqueduct over the river Ouse at Wolvcrton, and by
making cenain other provisions and accommodations
on the line of the said canal, additional safety and
expedition in conveyance of all kinds of goods, wares,
and merchandise^ would be secured to the publip :
and whereas the said company of proprietors are de-
sirous to execute the said tunnel, aqueduct, and
other works as aforesaid, and for that purpose to
raise among themselves, by subscription of the
holders of shares, half shares, and loans in the said
undertaking,'8ufficient sums for the execution thereof;
but that such beneficial purposes cannot be effected
without the aid and auihority of Parliament ; and Jt
is expedient that the powers and provisions of the

312 INLAND NAVIGATION.

said recited acts should be amended, altered, ancl
enlarged : be it enacted, . That it shj^U and may be
lawful for the said company of proprietors of the
Grand Junction canal, and they are hereby autho-
rised and empowered to raise, in manner hereinafter
mentioned, the further sum of 400,000/. and to
borrow or take up the same at legal or less interest,
from such persons as shall be willing to advance and
lend the same ; and the money so to be raised shall
be applied in defraying the expences of obtaining
and passing this act, and all other expenses relating
thereto, and of parrying on and completing the se-
veral works authorised to be done and completed by
vu-tue of any act or acts of Parliament now in force
for making and completing the said canal and navi-
gable cut$ ; and the said sum of 400,000 /• or such
part thereof as the said company of proprietors, or
the committee of the said company for the time
being, shall think proper, shall or may be raised,
by all, any, or either of the ways or means by which
the said company of proprietors are authorised to
raise any money by virtue of the said recited acts,
or any or either of them : and that all and every the
powers contained in the said several recited acts, with
respect to the borrowing and securing such sum or
sums of money, and the application thereof, shall
be extended to tliis act, as fully and effectually as
if the said several powers were repeated and re-enacted
in the body of this present act.

If. Provided always. That it shall and may be
lawful for the said company of proprietors, or their^
general committee for the time being, to raise the
§^id Slim of 400,000 /. *or Such part or parts thereof
as they shall from time to time think lit, by creating

XKIAI^O KAVlCAtroir^ 313

new or additional shates of 100 /< each, or half
shares of 50 /. each, or qtiarter shares of 25 /• each,
or eighth parts of shares of 13/. 105. tach, or any
or either of them, and disposing of the same to such
person or persons, and at such price or prices, as to
the said company of proprietors shall from time to
time seem meet; and that the respective proprietors
of any shares, 4. shares, -i- shares, or -j- parts of shares,
which shall or may be created by virtue of this act,
shall be entitled to such and the same powers, pri-
vileges, and advantages, and be liable to such and
the same restrictions, penalties, and forfeitures, as if
the same were part of the sbarfcs or half shares already
created, and now vested in the several and fespectivc
proprietors of the said Grand Junction canal*; and the
admission of every person to any such new shares,
half shares, quarter shares, or eighth parts of shares,
by any order or resolution of the said company of
proprietors, or the general committee for the time
being, shall be. good and effectual titles to such per-
fon or persons, and his, her, or their respective exe-
cutors and administrators, on his, her, or their pay*
ment to the said company of the purchase money or
price agreed for the same.

IIL And whereas the constructing, erecting, and
making the said tunnel at Blisworth, and aqueduct
over the river Ouse, and the other works as aforcr
said, will be attended with a very considerable ex-
pense to the said company of proprietors ; be it
therefore enacted. That it shall and may be lawful
fof the said company of proprietors, for and in con-
sideration of the same, to ask, demand, take, reco-
ter, and receive, to and for their own proper use
and behoof (over and above the rates of tonnage and

wharfage ^l^.aric, ei\ti^4 to c^cciyc), tho additional
rates berein-altec aientbix^ ; that ii. to sayj

For all C04I and oolcc,. lime, limestone, fUnt and^
9tber stones^ wd all bricks, tilc;s, s^a^c, sand, and
fuU^ earthy and all imojstonc^ pig iron and pig lead^
and all kinds of manure, ^hich shall be carried or
conveyed upon the ^d canal intq or through the
said proposed tunnel, cue the deep cutting at the two
mouths or entr^ncesi of the same, the additional sum
pf 6d. per ton ; and fojr aJl qthcr goods, wares, mer-
chandise, and things whatsoever, the additional suqi
x>f 1 s. Ad. per ton.

For all coal and col^e, lime;, limestone, flint an4
ether stooes, and all bricks, tiles, slates, sand, and
fullers earth, and ^1 ironstone, pig iron and pig lead,
and all kinds of manure, which shall be carried or
conveyed pver or upon any part of the said aqueduct,
the additional suni of 4(L per ton ; and for all other
goods, wares, merchandise, and things whatsoever,
the additional suni of Sd. per ton.

Which said additipqal r#te or rates shall be paid
by the person haying the care or conduct of every
boat, barge, or other vessel, which shall pass upon
the said canal, into or through the said tunnel or
deep cuttings, or over or upon the said aqueduct, at
such place or places as the said company of proprie->
tors shall appoint for that purpose,' and shall and
may be recovered and applied by such ways and
means, and in such manner, as the rate^ of tonnage
and wharfage gfanted by the said recited acts, or any
of them, are to be or may be recovered and applied ;
and in all cases where there shall be a fraction of a
ton in the weight of lading in any boat or other ves*
sel so to ba navigated into or through the said tun^

^ti and dcMp cuttiiigSy a; c^re^ or up9n; tbe sai4
Aqueduct^ PC ei.ttif r of ibeijt^, a pcoppmon of the
md mtes $})im, be dei^ai^ed smd taken by the said
cotppany of pr^rietors for s^ch fraction, according
to the number pf q^wters of a ton contained therein.

IV. And be it fiirther enacted, That the general
committee of the said cotepany of proprietors shall
have full power, from time to time, to lower or re-
duce all or any part of the sai4 rates upon all or any
or either of the articles, which shaU be carried upon
the said canals aod to raise the same ag^in to suc|;i
sum as they shall think proper, not exceeding the
rates before meniioned, as often as they shall deem
it necessary so tp do for the ii^terest of the said nayl-
^tion.

V. And whereas ccrtaip rules are established by
the said recited act of the 33 rd year of the reign of
his present Majesty, for ascertaining the weight of
timber and other articles conveyed in or upon the
said canal, which rules are liable-to great uncer-
tainty ; for remedy whereof, be it enacted^ That the
tonnage for timber, and all other goods, merchan*
dise, and things whatsoever, shall be ascertained and
charged according to the real weight thereof, and
that 1 1 2lif. avoirdupois shall be deemed and taken
as and for lUO weight, with respect to all timber,
and other goods, merchandise, and things what-^
soever ; any law, custoQi, or usage tq the contrary
in any wise notwithstanding.

VL Ami whereas by the said act passed in the
33rd year pf the reign of his present Majesty, the
company of proprietors of the Grand Junction canal,
are authorised to make and maintain a collateral
communication (by such cuts, rail-ways, or other

3l6 r»l.AND NAriOATIOK.

ways and means, as therein mentioned) to branch
from and out of the Grand Junction canal, in the
parish of Gayton, to join the navigation of the
river Nen at the town of Northampton : And where-
as it is expedient that such collateral communication
should be made and completed on or before the 25th
day of March 1805 ; be it therefore, and it is hereby
enacted. That the said company of proprietors shall,
and they are hereby required and directed to cause
such collateral communication as aforefaid to be
TXiade and completed on or before the said 2Dth day
of March 1805-

VII. And it is hereby further enacted, That out
of the sum of money authorised to be raised by
this act, a sum sufficient to defray the charge ai\.d
expense of making and completing such collateral
communication from the said Grand Junction canal,
in the parish of Gayton, to join the navigation of
the river Nen at the town of Northampton as afore-
^id, shall be, and th^ same is hereby required and
directed to be appropriated and applied solely and
exclusively to the making and completing the said
Jast mentioned collateral communication.

VIII. And be it further enacted, That the charges
and expenses attending the obtaining and passing
this act, shall be paid by the said company of pro-
prietors ; and that this act shall be deemed and taken
to be a public act, and shall be judicially taken no-
tice of as such by all judges, justices, and other per-
sons, without specially pleading the same,

GnANTHAM Canal.

The act for this canal was obtained 33 Geo. III.
Jt begins on the east side of Grantham, in Lincoln-

shire, dtid passes Harlaxton, the Pointy flt the foot
of Woolsthorp Hill, Stainwitb, Hcdtnile^ along
Belvoir Vale, by fiarkestone, Plungar, ttarby. Long
Clawson, to Hickling ; from thence it passes through
Kinnoulton, Coulton Basset^ • Cropwell Bishop, and
joins the Trent between Holme-Picrrepont atid Rad-
clifFe, in Nottinghamshire. There is a branch from *
Cropwell Bishop to Binghano.

From Grantham to the Trent by this canal is 30
miles, and 148 feet fall to the river Trent, viz. from
Grantham to Woolsthorp Hill is five miles, and level ;
thence to Stainwith Close is 1 J- mile, and 58 i feet
fall ; from thence along Belvoir Vale, is 20 miles,
and level, to Cropwell Bishop ; and from thence to
the Trent is 3 1 miles, and 8Q\ feet fall. The branch
to Bingham is above three miles, and level.

The company have the usual powers to make the
canal. No water to be taken from the river Witham
feeders, except the flood waters of Denton Brook,,
which must be turned into a reservoir to be made at
Denton of 20 acres, and three yards deep ; this i$
intended to supply the head level. Another reservoir
is to be made between Branstone and Kniptorr, of
6o acres, and to receive only the flood waters of the
river Devon, and any other waters within half a
mile, and to be always nine feet deep in water. In
passing the parishes of Woolsthorp, Stainwith, Mus-
ton, Bottesford, and Redmile, the canal is not to
deviate more than 50 yards from the line laid down^
without leave from the Duke of Rutland ; but in all
the other course 100 yards as usual is allowed. The
canal and towing*path, drains, ditches, banks, &c^
not to exceed 24 yards in breadth.

318 tiTLAtrh NAviGA'ttolr.

The Conipany itt allowed to ruisc 75*000 /. dU
vided into lOOl.ihztdSj and may raise 30,000 /-
more if wanteds No person to have above lO
shares.

Exemptions^ that Charles Pierrepont and John
Musters, esqs. aiid the other proprietors^ their heirs
and tenants of estates, within the parishes of Not-
tingham, West Bridgford, Adbolton, Gamston,
Bassingfield, Cotgrove, "Clipston, and Cropweli But-
ler, whose lands the toid cstnal shall pass through,
between the first day of November and the first day
of May yearly, ^hall be exempted from the gross
tonnage of 24^. charged on entering into or passing
out of the canal, at the junction with the Trent, on
all goods, wares, &c. which shall be for their own
private use, and not for sale, and navigated only be*
twecn the river Trent and HoUowgate Lane, in the
lordship of Cotgrove.

The profits are not to exceed eight per cent, and
when 3,000 /. at that rate is accumulated, the rates,
tolls, &c. to be lowered.

The proprietors of the river Trent navigation arc
to take away the shallows, and lower the bod of that
river, so that at the .driest season there yaln^e 30
inches depth of water between the Nottingham canal
and this canal, and between Nottingham Trent-
bridge and this canal. This canal will greatly ac-
commodate the town of Grantham. The coals, lime,
&c. by the Cromford and Nottingham canals, will
have a cheap and easy carriage ; and on timber,
corn, and many other articles which now come by
land-carriage, the difference to that town only will
be very great.

* •

An act to vkry tMs caiial was obtained 33 Geo.
III. to authorise the company to alter this act of 31
Geo. III. before mentioned. The main alteration
is^ to bring the course df the canal by a tunnel
through the high ground about Oxenhall^ from
Dimmock, by Oxenhall, Ne^rerit, Taynton, Tib-
berton, and Rudford, by which means a large circuit
of canal^ and the' coUater^al'cuts to Ncwent, -will be
saved. By this act any water within 300 yards may
be taken for the use of the tunnel, and the tvaste
water made to go into Newent brook, and from
thence into the river Xeadon. Another alterarion is,
to shorten the canal at crossing the river Lugg at
"Sutton St. Nicholas, and Shelwick. The canal is
likewise to go nearer to Hereford^ almost to Byster^s
Gate.

Lakcastbr Canal, to extend.

By the act 33 6eo« III. which is an addition to a
former act, the proprietors are authorised ' to make
a cut from the dock at Glasson at the mouth of the
river Loyne, to unite with the canal at Galgate,
which is six miles from Lancaster. The cut will be
four miles in length, and have a direct communi-*
cation with the sea. The same tonnage is allowed
as on the main line.

The company are restricted from obtaining water
from the river Loyne, except for an aqueduct over
that river ; they are also debarred from taking water
from the river Wyer. They may have water from
mines within 2000 yards of the canal gratis ; and
water raised by fire- engines, is to be given for the
uses of this canal.

620 li;hA^D KAViSJLTIOK*

The aqueduct over the river Loyne, near Lari^
caster^ is the most capital thing of the kind in Ed-
gland, if not in Europe ; it consists of five arches of
7Q feet span each.

MANCHEStER ANB OlDHAM fixTENSIOK^

This act was granted in 33 Grco. IIL and empower^
the Manchester and Oldham canal companies to
make a navigable cut for boats^ barges, &c. from
the Manchester and Oldham canal, at Clayton
Demesne, in the parish of Manchester, to opposite
the Three Boars Heads at Heaton Norris, near Stock-
port, which is six miles; also to continue this
canal northward, from Taylor's Barn to Denton,
about three miles ; also from the aqueduct near the
water-houses on the Oldham branch, to make a canal
to Stake Leach, at HoUingwood, about two miles.

This act consolidates this company with the Old-
ham and Manchester canal companj% and gives the
usual powers for making cuts, not deviating above
100 yards from the line laid down. The company
may raise 30,000/. divided into 1C07. shares, and
no one to hold more than 30 shares,

NUTBROOK CaXAL.

This act was also obtained in 33 Geo. Ill* and the
canal commences at the Shipley and West llallam
collieries, in Derbyshire, and going by Kirk Hallarii
joins the Erewash canal, at or near Stanton. The
length is five miles, and is the private property of
Sir Henry Hunloke, bart. and Edward Miller
Mundj^j esq. the owners of the collieries.

This canal is called the Nutbrook canal, and the
proprietors have the usual powers, . The canal.

INLAND NAVIGATION. af21

towing-path, &c; is 90 feet wide ; 13,000/. may be
raised by subscriptions, divided into lOO/. shares;
and 6,500/. more may be raised if the first sum is*
not enough.

Exemption. Earl Stanhope, or his tenants of
Stanton-by-Dalc, and Dale- Abbey, may carry on-
this canal free of all rates, iron-stone, coal and coke,
and also all goods, wares, and merchandise, that may
be used in the before-mentioned two parishes, and
any iron-stone that may be got in the lordships of
Shipley, Mapperly, West-Hallam, Kirk-Hallam,
Ilkcstone, and Little-Hallam.

The principal use of this canal will be to the col-
lieries of Shipley, and West-Hallam, but ultimately
the public will be greatly benefited by a cheap and
easy conveyance of that useful article, fuel.

Oakham Canal.

The act for this canal was granted in 33 Geo. IIL.
It begins at and joins the Melton-Mowbry navi-
gation, in Leicestershire, and proceeds by the north
side of the river Eye, passes Brentingby, Wiverby,
Stapleford, Saxby, Wymondham, Edmondthorpe,
Teigh, Market-Overton, Barrow, Cottesmore, Bur-
ley, and joins the town of Oakham, in Rutlandshire,
on the north side, running a course of 1 5 miles, with
126 feet rise in the first 8^ miles to Edmondthorpe ;
from thence to Oakham is level ; the reservoir is
near Langham.

The company have the usual powers. The water
of Scafibrd-Dyke is preserved to the mill, called the
Two-Eyed-Mill, at Melton ; the flood water only
of Langley Brook is to be taken for the reservoir ; no
water to be tak^n from th€ springs, &c. in the

322 INLAND NAVIGATION.

grounds of Lbrd Harborough, in Saxby and Wy-
mondham, without returning the same quantity frcun
the canal, nor is any water to be taken from Thorpe
brook.

The breadth allowed for the canal, towing-path,
&c. is 20 yards, and the towing-path to be used as
a bridle- way by occupiers of lands. The soil, &c*
dug out of the canal to be levelled on the adjoining
land. The company are allowed to raise 56,000 /•
to be divided into 100 1, shares, and they have li-
berty to raise 20,000/. more, if that first sum is not
sufficient.

The company are obliged to pay the Earl of Win-
chelsea 15 /. a year, in lieu of his Lordship's dues on
coals sold ^t Oakham.

The extending this canal through a populous and
well-cultivated country must be of the utmost be-
nefit to the inhabitants at large, and all the com-
merce and produce by the north canal will have
conveyance to Oakham, the capital of Rutland-
shire.

Shrewsbury CanXl.

The act for this canal was obtained 33 Geo* III.
It commences at Shrewsbury, and winding with the
Severn, passes Uffington ; from thence it goes . pa-
rallel with the river Tern, and passes Upton Forge,
Withington, Rodington, where it crosses the river
Rodcn, and shortly after crosses the Tern river, at
Long Mill, passes Langdon and Eyton, and then
crosses Kctley brook at Rockwardine wood, in
Shropshire, and it there joins the Donnington and
Shropsliire canals. The length of this canal is 174-
miles, with 147 f^ct rise ia five nules which is be-

INLA^TD NAVIGATION. 323

tween Langdon and Wombridge, the remainder is

level.

The company have the usual pTSwers, and liberty
also to purchase one mile and 188 yards of Mr.
Reynolds on the Ketley canal, for 840/. bding a
moiety of the original cost, which is afterwards to
be deemed a part of the Shrewsbury canal. The
junction is formed at Wombridge, and is to be looked
on as a collateral cut. This canal, towing-path, &c.
is 26 yards broad. The company are empowered to
raise 50,000/. distributed into shares of lOO/. each,
and 20,000/. niore may be raised if wanted.

The number of coal and iron mines in the neigh-
bourhood of the whole line of this canal is immense;
and the cheapness of carriage by it will greatly be-
nefit the owners as well as the manufacturers, and
also the rich, flourishing, and populous town of
Shrewsbury.

Stratford Canal.

The act of parliament for this canal is also of 33
Geo. III. It joins the Worcester and Birmingham
canal at King's-Norton, about six miles from Bir-
mingham ; from its junction it takes its course to
Yardley Wood common, it then passes Shirley Street^
Monkford Street, Lapworth, Preston Bagot, where
it crosses the river Alne ; thence by Wootten to
Stratford-upon-Avon, but not into that river. There
is a branch runs by Billesly to the ston,e quarries near
Temple Grafton, and another to the quarries near
Tanworth. The canal is 24^ miles long without
the branches, and has 309 feet fall to Stratford ; viz.
from King's-Norton to near Horkley Heath, 10
miles level ; thence to Lapworth Hall 2^ miles, and

Y 2

324 INLAND NAVIGATION'.

147 feet fall ; thence to Preston Green one mile,
level; thence to Preston Mill l|- mile, and 76 feet
fall ; thence to Wilmcote six miles, level ; thence to
Stratford 2^ miles, and 86 feet fall in the first mile,
the rest is level. The branch to Tanworth is 24.
miles, and level ; and the cut to Grafton Field is
four miles, with 20 feet rise in the last mile and a
half.

The company have the usual powers ; the canal,
towing-path, &c. are 20 yards wide; they are em-
powered to raise 1 20,000/. in 100 1, shares, and
allowed to raise 6o,000/. more if wanted. Stop-
gates must be erected on this canal when within
500 yards of the Worcester and Birmingham canal,
vvhich may be shut and locked up, if the water shall
be lower in this than in the last- mentioned canal.

The Worcester and Birmingham canal company
are obliged to pay George Perrot, esq. as a recom-
pence for his dues on the river Avon, 400 /. per an-
num, which is the damage supposed he will sustain
by this canal ; and the Worcester and Birminjgham
canal company are to pay to the said George Perrot,
esq.' the deficiency of his present yearly rents of
J 227 /. payable for the lower navigation of the river
Avon, by the present tenants, but on condition that
they cannot be let for that money after this act is
passed.

The course of this canal crosses a country plenti-
ful in lime-stone and minerals, which will have a
ready water-carriage to Birmingham by their canal ;
the other end of the canal falling into the river Avon
at Stratford, will have a direct water conveyance to
the Severn and its unbounded connections, which
cannot fail to be of the utmost consequence to the
land and mine-owners on the canal.

iniiand navigation. 325

Stainporth and K^eadby Canal.

This is another act obtained in the 33rd Geo. TIL
for cutting a canal which begins at the river Dun,
within a mile of Fishlake, and goes parallel with
that river to opposite Thorn ; whence, in a direct
line, it passes Crowle and Keadby, where it enters
the Trent, in Lincolnshire. There is a cut of a mile
long across Thorn common, to Hangman Hill, and
which joins the river Dun; This canal is near 15
miles long, and going through fenns chiefly, is with-
out fall or lockage, except out of the rivers at each
end. The company have the usual powers, and are
authorised to raise 24,000 /. in shares of lOO/. each^
and 12,100/. more if wanted. The ground allowed
for the canal, towing-path, &c. is 100 yards broad,
and a reservoir of five acres is allowed to be made on
Thorn common.

The waste water of this canal is to be conveyed
into the Trent. This canal is chiefly local, for car-
riage of coals, timber, corn, &c. into the country
bordering on the canal, and by the Trent to Gains-
borough and Hull, and to other markets.

Stowmabket and Ipswich Navigation,

TO AMEND.

This is another act of the 33rd Geo. III. The
proprietors of this navigation are en?powered to raise
for that purpose 15,000/. in order to increase the
sum of 14,300/. before allowed ; that sum not prov-
ing sufficient for carrypag the extensive improvement
into execution.

326 ' inland navigation,

Ulverstone Canal.

This act was also obtained 33 Geo. III. This
cut or canal is only 14- mile long, and chiefly intended
to accommodate the town of Ulverstone, in Lanca-
shire, by having a direct union with the Irish Sea,
with a basin and wharfs for shipping and merchan-
dise. The lock is 112 feet long, and capable of
receiving a large ship ; the canal is 65 feet wide at
top, and 30 feet at bottom, with 1 5 feet depth of
water, and a proper towing-path.

The company are empowered to raise 4,000/. to
be divided into 50/. shares, and may raise by loan
3,000/. more if wanted. The company are to build
a public bridge over the canal at Hammerside Hill,
and the Lancaster canal may join with this. Coals,
culm or cinders that shall be carried into this canal
from the Lancaster canal arc to pay no sea duty.

Union Canal.

The number of acts obtained in the session of
33 Geo. III. did not prevent another for this
canal, which begins at and joins the river Soar navi-
gation at Leicester, and goes to Aylstone, 3 miles
nearly parallel with that river ; from Aylston it passes
Glen Parva, Wigston, Newton Harcourt, Wistow
/and Saddington, where it makes an elbow through
a tunnel of 40 chains and passes Foxton, and then
goes through another tunnel of 48 chains, from which
extremity is a cut to Market Harborough ; from the
last tunnel it makes another bend, and crosses the
river Welland, passing between Marston Trussel and
Hothorp, and turns to East Farndon and great
Oxcndcn, where it goes through a tunnel of only

INLAND NAVIGATION. 327

13 chains; near this place is the reservoir for the
summit to be supplied by Oxenden brook; from hence
it proceeds to Kelmarsb, where is another tunnel of
45 chains ; then goes by Maidwqll, Lamport, Hang-
ing-Houghton, Brixworth, and parallel with the
northern branch of the river Nen by Spratton, Pis-
ford, Chapel Brampton, Kingsthorp, Dallington to
Northampton, into the river Nen navigation, and the
Grand Junction canal, finishing a line of 4 34 miles,
from Leicester to Northampton, with 407 feet 6
inches lockage, and going througlf 4 tunnels. The
cut to Market Harbro is 34 miles and level, the
particulars of the rise and falls are as follows. From
Westbridge, at Leicester, where it joins the river
Soar, to Saddington 12|. miles, and 160 feet rise ;
frotft thence to Great Oxenden 13-j. miles, and level ;
in one furlong at this place is a rise of 50 feet to the
summit, which is 5 miles to the tunnel at Kelmarsh ;

thence to the joining the north river at Northampton
is 1 14 miles, 197-5- feet fall ; thence to join the Nea
4 of a mile level.

This company, like others, have the proper powers
for making canals, and are authorised to raise
200,000/. in 100/. shares as usual, and may raise
100,000/. more if wanted. No water for this canal
to be taken from the estate of Lady Denbigh,^ nor
from the brook at Kelmarsh to injure Mr. Hanbury's
estate, nor from the springs on Thomas Pares', Esq.
estate ; nor more from the mill at Aylston, than will
be wanting for the trade of that place ; nor from the
water of the cotton mill at Northampton. The
breadth of this canal and towing-path, &tc. is 20
yards, and not to deviate above lOO yards from the

328 INLAND NATIGATION.

line ; the soil dug out to be spreisid and levelled at
the company's expense.

The company guarantee to Lord Harbcrough, that
the profits of the weighing engine at Market Har-
bro shall not be less than 120/. a year.

They likewise guarantee to the living of Langton
600/. a year, according to the act of 31 Geo. III.
for enclosing the-parishes of East and West Langton.
A canal that is intended from Uppingham, in Rut-
landshire, is permitted to unite with this canal.

The course of this canal is of the utmost conse-
quence ; its union with the Grand Junction canal
consequently unites the Yorkshire, Derbyshire, Grand
Trunk, rr\^ers Trent and Thames, besides passing
through the populous commercial and manufacturing
countries and towns.

Warwick and Birmingham Canal.

This act was likewise obtained 33 Geo. IIL The
canal begins on the verge of the town of Warwick, pas-
ses Budbrook, Hatton, Rowington, Badesley, Clinton,
Knowle, Solihull, Yardley, and joins the Digbeth
cut of the Birminghani and Fazeley Canal at the
edge of Birmingham town, being 25 miles in length.
The company have the usual powers, and by agree-
Nment may join the Birmingham and Fazeley canal,
on keeping this canal level with the other canal where
the union is formed, and never drawing the water
lower than four feet without consent. Also all goods,
wares, and merchandise going into or out of the
Birmingham and Fazeley canal' to pay to that com-
pany a tonnage as mentioned in the act.

The ground for the canal, t mg-path, &c. is
30 yards broad, and not to extend more than 100

INLAND NAVIGATION* 329

yards from the line. No water to be taken from the
river Rea, nor from the supply of Olton mill to its
prejudice. The company are allowed to raise
100,000/. in 100/. shares as usual, and if wanted
30,000/. more.

No boat less than 70 feet long, and 20 tons bur-
den, to pass any lock without leave ; but boats 5 feet
broad, not carrying for hire, but entirely used for the
purpose of husbandry, are to be free of rates, but
not to pass locks.

Nothing more fully shews the enterprising genius
of the inhabitants of Birmingham, than the number
of canals cut from that town in every direction ; and
nothing more evinces the utility of inland naviga-
tions, than the assiduity with which these people
strive to accommodate themselves and the public.

The Avon navigation goes no farther than Strat-
ford, and till the persent period there has been no
water carriage to Warwick ; but by this canal they
will Be amply supplied with coals from Wednesbury
colliery cheap, as also with all kinds of minerals.

ASHBY-DE-LA-ZOUCH CaNAL.

The act for this canal was obtained 34 Geo. III.
It unites with the Coventry canal at Marston Bridge,
two miles from Nuneaton ; it then passes Hinckley ;
then to Stoke Golding, Dadlington, through Bos-
wortb-^ Field, and near Market Bosworth ; then crosses
the river Sence toGopsal-Park, goes to Snareton,
and through a tunnel it goes to Measham, Oakthorpe,
and across Ashby Woulds, and through Blackfordby
to Ashby-de-la Zouch, in Leicestershire, and con-
tinues on about H mile farther than the town, and
through a tunnel of one nile, a cut is made to

830 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Ticknall : another cut goes to the Hmc-works at
Cloud's-Hill ; on the branch to Ticknall, and near
where it begins, a cut is made to Staunton lime-
works, and another cut goes to Swadlincote colKery.
This canal with all its branches is 50 miles long, and
252 feet lockage. To particularize which from its
beginning to Oakthorpe fire engine on Ashby .Woulds
is 26\ miles, and level ; thence across the Woulds
4 miles I furlong, with 140 feet rise ; thence to Old
Park beyond Ashby- de-la-Zouch is 4 miles 5 fur-
longs, and 84 feet fall in the last mile ; the cut to
Ticknall 4 miles 5 furlongs, and level ; the cut to
Staunton lime-works is 7 furlongs, and 28 feet fall ;
the cut to Cloud Hill 6 miles 6 furlongs, and level ;
that to Swadlingcotc coal-works is 2 miles I furlong,
and level. The level from Ashby Woulds is unin-
terrupted along the Coventry canal to Hill Morton
on the Oxford canal, full 70 miles, without lock, rise,
or fall.

This company have the usual powers ; the breadth
of canal, &c. 24 yards, and not to deviate at all
from the line laid down without leave of the ad-
joining land owners.

The water is to be preserved entire at Mr. Cuzzon^s
at Gopsal Park, under a penalty of 50,000/. and if
Earl Ferrers requires, the company may make a cut
to Stanton Harold ; the water of several springs it
prohibited.

Wharfs for the use of the public will be made on
Ashby Woulds, and at Green Hills, near Sutton
Cheney. The cuts to Ticknall and Cloud Hill to
be finished in 5 years ; soil, &c. to be levelled by
the company. The owners of steam engines are to
supply the canal with water. The towing-path to

INLAND NAVIGATION. 331

be used as a bridle way. The sides of the canal are
to be puddled where wanting. Melborne brook to
be so deepened as to be able to carry off the flood-
water into the Trent.

The company are empowered to raise '150,000/.
in shares of lOO/. each, as usual, and liberty to
raise 50,000/. more if wanted.

There are certain stipulations agreed to with Sir
George Beaumont relative to his collieries at Coleor-
ton, and the company are to buy coals there on
certain conditions.

It being conceived that this canal will injure the
Coventry canal, it is agreed that this company shall
pay to that company bd. per ton for all coals, goods,
wares, and merchandise, carried into or out of thia
canal from the Coventry, Oxford, or Grand Junction
canals; and, if a junction with this canal and the
Oxford, or Grand Junction canals, the same dues
shall then be paid to the Coventry canal ; and the
tolls for navigating on the Coventry canal shall be
calculated from GrifF, where the junction was in-
tended, it being 3 furlongs more distant than Mar-
iston-bridge. It is also specified that this canal shall
be level from Ashby Woulds to its junction with the
Coventry canal.

Exemption. The bd> per ton on the Coventry

canal does not extend to corn or other grain ; sheep

or other cattle ; iron-stone or wrought iron, got or

made on the banks of this canal ; all kinds of manure,

- and materials for repairing roads.

The com pan y_ also bind themselves to indemnify
the Leicester navigation for maintaining the rail-
ways and water levels between the river Soar iiaviga-
tion and the several coal-works at Swannington,

C32 INLAND NAriGATIOK.

Colenton, and Thringston common, and allow them
to take for their own use half-a-crown a ton on all
coals carried from any works now open or to be
opened in the before-mentioned three parishes, which
may pass a speci6ed place in the lordship of Black-
fordby, about 3 miles from Ashby-de la-Zouch.

The large collieries in the north part of this canal
will be vastly increased on this canal's completion.

Birmingham Canal Extension.

This act was granted 34 Geo. III. and empowers
this new company to join, and to change the name of
the old company of Birmingham, and Birmingham
and Fazeley canal company, to the Birmingham
Canal Navigation Company, with the usual powers
for making canals, and includes all grants of former
acts, and to make a cut to extend this canal from
Broadwater to Walsal, and likewise to make three
cuts from the same,. viz. one from the canal at Broad-
water to the township ef Bradley, in Wolverhamp-
ton parish, another from the canal to the township
of Bilstonc, and another from the canal to finish
near David's r Ram- Farm ; and when they may think
proper to make another branch from the Birmingham
and Fazeley canal at Bloomfield in Tipton parish, to
join the same canal at Deepfield in the parish of
Sedgeley : this being chiefly to save 4 miles by mak-
ing a tunnel to avoid the large elbow which is here
made by the canal. To take no water from Rye-
Croft, Black Brook, Cole-Pool, Gorlscoit, Fistley,
Brown's-Hills, Clayanger, Catshill, PiddockVWell,
Little-Heath, Linley, Hay-head, and Longwood,
or from any waters, springs, &c. that have generally
supplied the mills and other works of the Earl of

INLAND NAVIGATION, 333

Montrath, Lord Dudley, or J. C. Jcrvoise, Esq.
The cut from Broadwater to Walsal is engaged to be
finished within 3 years.

This company are empowered to borrow 45,000 /.
on the credit of tolls, &c. Then follow several cal-
culations and regulations of wharfage, tonnage, rates,
&c. that will rather tend to perplex than explain^
except to persons concerned or on the spot ; but are
unentertaining and useless to the generality of readers.
By a clause in the act, a treasurer is to be chosen to
receive and be answerable to the proprietors of the
united companies for what money is collected at
Farmer's-bridge.

HUDDERSFIELD CaNAL.

This act was obtained 34 Geo. III. The canal
joins Sir John Ramsden's canal on the side of Hud-
dersfield in Yorkshire, and runs west parallel with the
river Colne, which it twice crosses, and passes by
Longwood, Staighthwaite, and Marsden. There is
a tunnel of near 3^ miles long, from Marsden undet
Pule Moss and Brunn-Top, to within two miles of
Dub-Cross ; passing which it runs on the side of the
river Tame, and crossing the windings of that river
several times, comes within a mile of Lydgate, by
Mossley and Stayley Bridge, and unites with the
Ashton and Oldham canal on the side of the town
of Ashton-under-Line, in Lancashire ; pursuing a
line of 19 miles 5 furlongs, and 770 feet lockage ;
that is to say, from Huddersfield to Marsden 7-^
miles, and 436 feet rise ; thence and through the
tunnel is 3 miles 7 furlongs, level ; thence to where
it joins the Ashton and Oldham canal 8 miles 3 fur-
longs, and 334 feet fall. The summit receives and

334 INLAND NAVIGATION.

lupplies water from the reservoirs at Marsdcn and
at the west end of the tunnel.

The company have the usual powers. The canal
with towing-path, &c. is 30 yards wide ; and not to
wander more than 100 yards from the line laid down.
The company are enabled to make reservoirs to hold
20,000 locks fiill of water, each lock containing
180 cubic yards; and other reservoirs may be
made at proper places, if the first will not suffi-
ciently supply the canal ; from those springs that
supply mills the flood water only is to be taken, and
the water of the reservoir is to be passed into brooks
to assist the mills, which are not to be injured, but
assisted. A lock of 8 feet wide is to be made where
the canal joins Sir John Ramsden's canal. Sir
John Ramsden is not to take any rates for goods,
&c. carried out of this canal into his canal, between
this canal and Sir John's warehouses near Hudders-
iield ; and no boat is to be navigated from this canal
lower than the Red- Doles lock, on Sir John's canal,
without leave; and if Sir John Ramsden's profit*
suffer by means of this canal, the deficiency is to be
made good by this company, taking the average of
3 years produce.

The company are allowed to raise 18>J,000/. di-
vided into ioo/. shares, and also 90,000/. more if
wanted. No person is'to have more than 5 votes.

If a canal at any time hereafter shall be made to
the east to unite with this or Sir John Ramsden's
canal, that would injure the navigation of the Air
and Calder, the Calder and Habble navigation,
and Sir John Ramden's, a full rccompcnce shall be
made by this canal company.

By this canal the cast and west seas will be united
within 20 miles, and from the spirit and perseverance

INLAND NAVIGATION, 335

already manifested, there can be no doubt but the
finishing hand will shortly complete it, especially as
the country round, as well as where this canal passes,
abounds with minerals, stone, lime, and other use-
ful commodities to the land owners, manufacturers,
and the public generally.

Haslingden Canal.

The act for this canal was obtained 33 Geo. IIL
It unites the Bury and Bolton canal from Manchester
on the side of the former ; it then passes Walmsley,
Tottington, Haslingden, Accrington, and joins the
Leeds and Liverpool canal at Church, all in Lanca-
shire. The whole length 13 miles.

The company have the usual powers, and is
granted 26 yards broad for the canal, &c. and not to
deviate from the line prescribed without the land
owners' consent ; they are also restrained from mak-
ing any locks for the passing of boats, which is in-
tended to be accomplished on this canal by rollers,
racks, inclined planes, or other machinery; but
after the above experiments have been made, if they
are found not to answer the purpose, and that locks
are absolutely necessary, the company must apply-
to, and obtain the consent of three-fourths of the
mill-owners on some particular streams ; tlie mills
must be protected, and flood water only made use of
by the canal. The company are authorised to raise
47,600/. divided into lOO/. shares, and may raise
40,000/. more if wanted.

Exemptions, as usual, all manures for lands ad-
joining ; and . all materials, of whatever kind, for
making or mending public or private roads.

335 INLAND NAVIGATION.

This canal is another convincing proof of the opu-
lence and sagacity of the gentlemen land-owner?
and manufacturers of Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester,
Bury, and Bolton, by which they receive for their
raw materials and manufactured goods a cheap water
carriage to a market. The whole country in the
vicinity of the canal, and for some miles on each
side, abounds with coals, lime, limestone, and mi-
nerals of almost all descriptions.

Kennet and Avon Canal.

The act for this canal was granted 34 Geo. IIL
Its junction with the river Kennet is a little above
Newbury, in Berkshire, and runs parallel with that
river through Lord Craven's park to Kintbury, where
it crosses the river Kennet twice, and goes on to
Dunn Mill, through Hungerford town, and crosses
the Kennet again about a mile above it, and thence
goes on to Froxficld, and again crosses the Kennet
river, and again below Great Bedwin, and thence
goes to Crofton, which is the head of the river
Kennet. It now passes through a tunnel 2^ miles
long from Crofton to Burbage, and comes out at
Brimstade, thence it proceeds by Wooton Rivers,
Wilcot, Stanton Barnard, Allington, and goes be-
tween South- Horton and Bishop Cannings, to the
Devizes, and thence proceeds to between Upper and
Lower Foxhangcr, by Bulkington, Paxcroft and
Trowbridge, where it crosses the river Avon at Trowle-
bridge ; thence by Ladydown Farm, to Windbrook
and Bradford in Wiltshire, and at AnclifF Mills it
again crosses the Avon, and goes on to Winsley and
Limpley Stoke, where it again crosses the Avon, and
proceeds by the side of that river beyond Bathamp-

INLAND NAVIGATION. 337

tbii, where the junction of the river Avon is com-
pleted.

It is intended to cut a branch to Calne and Chip-
penham, Wilts, which is to proceed from the canal
between Upper and Lower Foxhanger, and will pass
near to Bromham, and on to Sandridge house, be-
tween Bcwley-common and Laycock, to Great Lodge,
from whence one cut will go to Colne and the othe-r
to Chippenham, Wilts.

The entire length of this canal from Newbury to
Bath is 60 miles, with 1 76 feet rise, and 369 feet
fall, which I shall particularise iti the following man-
ner ; from the river Kennet to Hungerford nine miles,
and 72 feet rise ; thence to Crofton six miles, and
104 feet rise. The level summit from here to the
Devises is 20 miles ; thence to Bulkingron 84- miles,
and 27 1 feet fall ; thence to Paitcroft five miles, and
level ; theTice to Trowle Bridge three miles, and 354.
feet fall ; thence to near Bathampton 10-i- miles, and
level ', thence to the river three quarters of a mile,
and 56-^ feet fall. The length of the cuts to Calnc
and Chippenham is 14 miles five furlongs ; from
Chippenham to where it joins the canal at Fox-
hanger is 104. miles, and level, and four miles one
furlong from Great Lodge to Calne, with 18 feet rise
in the last half mile.

Any waste water from the summit level is to be
evacuated down the vale of Bedwin at Crofton, and
down Horton water course, and the Bourne river
to Salisbury. The company have the usual powers ;
and whatever may be dug out in making the canal, is
to be spread on the adjoining ground at their expense.
The canal is to be puddled in proper places, and the
banks raised higher at Bathwick. There are several

338 INLAND NATIGATIOS.

limitations concerning the taking of land and water.
Inclined planes may be used ; at the Devises a reser<^
voir is to be made for the inhabitants. No engine
of any kind or reservoir is to be made below Great
Bedwin for filling the canal ; the breadth allowed is
30 yards, towing-paths included. The company-
are authorised to raise 420,000/. to be divided into
3500 shares of 120/. each, and a certain number of
them to be divided in half shares ; and one whole or
two half shares to have a vote ; they may raise
150,000/. more if wanted. Land-owners may use
boats for pleasure or husbandry 12 feet long, and
five feet broad, but not for hire, nor to pass any
lock. If the town of Marlbro' sustains any loss,
arbitrators are to be appointed to make them satis-
faction.

A canal being in agitation from Trowbridge t%
pass Chippenham, Wootten-Basset, and Sbrivenha©,
and unite with the Thames at Abingdon or Walling-
ford ; with cuts to Calne and Chippenham : the
company are not to begin those cuts for 24. years
from the passing the act, in order to give time to
digest the other canal from Trowbridge to tha
Thames. The canal is to be completed in 12 years,
and it is under consideration to extend it into Somer-
setshire, and if so, it is to be called the Somersetshire
coal canal.

The utility of this canal, from its going through
such a great scope of country, and through so maxiy, .
principal manufacturing towns, and also uniting the^
cities of London and Bristol, cannot but be of the
greatest consequence both to the merchant and ma^-
nufacturer, from the ease, cheapness, and certainty
•f water-carriage in a few days from one city to
tlie oth^ ; the long, hazardous voyage round the

INLAND NAVIGATION. 339

Land^s End^ and sometimes round the Scilly Islands,
may now be entirely avoided^ and the ships, as well
as the horses for land- carriage may be used for other
purposes, arid not only our woollen goods, but aU
other commodities will be greatly benefited by it,
and it is likely, and I may say certainly, to be equally
bene6cial to any canal yet perfected.

Nor* 1802* — Remarh on the prcgnts of Canals*

The Kennet and Avon canal is-pioceeding with alertness, great
hopes are now formed of this undertaking, the new shares bear a
premium* ^

Leeds and Liverpool Canal, to vary.

The act for allowing the variation of this canal
passed 34 Geo. III. Its course and lockage have
already claimed attention ; and as it is not my bu-
siness to enter into the opposition, objections, and
interference of interested land- owners in every public
undertaking of this sort, I shall merely observe that
it is not now to deviate from the line laid down with*
out the land-owners consent* The water of a num->
ber of brooks there described is not be taken for
the use of the canal* Cuts may be made by the
Rev. Mr. Walton, the Earl of Balcarras, and Mr.
Shuttleworth ; but those are to be on a levrf with
the canal, and to have proper stop-gates to prevent
the canal losing water. A branch is also to be cut
by the company to the coal-works at Ighton-Hill
Park, which lies between Wigan and Chorley. The
width of the canal, &c. is 26 yards, and the com-^
pany have the usual powers, and are empowered to
borrow on security of the tolls 280,000 /* but no
more.

340 INLAND NAVIGATIOJJT.

The varying the course of this canal is of great
advantage to the company, as it embraces several
considerable market and manufacturing towns, which
will be greatly benefited by having a cheap water*
carriage for their goods to Liverpool and Hull, and
carrying them supplies not only from those sea-
ports, but coals and other useful commodities.

MeKSEY AND IrWELL NAVIGATION, TO INCOR-

TORATE.

This act is of 32 Geo. III. and distinctly repeats
the meaning of former acts, to authorise the pro-
prietors to make the rivers Mersey and Irwell navi-
gable for boats, barges, &c. from Liverpool to Hunt's
Bank in Manchester, Lancashire, and admit of par-
ticular rates of tonnage for the same. The towns of
Lancashire being greatly increased in trade and ma-
nufactures; the navigation on those rivers is in con-
sequeuce much enlarged. The proprietors, being by
this act incorporated into a company called the Ir-
well and Mersey navigation company, have the full
powers usual on those occasions invested in them.

Montgomery Canal.

Although it is my intention to arrange the canals
in theit proper and several countries, yet, notwith-
standing the name, as this rises in an English county,
I shall introduce it here.

The act for this canal was obtained 34 Geo. III.
and begins at Forty wain lime- works, near Uany-
blodwell, in Shropshire, where it unites with a cut
of the Ellesmerc canal ; thence it goes to very near
Llanymynach, and there crosses the Verniew river, .
where it joins another cut of the Ellesmere canal i

INLAND NAVIGATION. 341

and then goes by Gwern-felA, where there is a cut
to Guilsfield and Welch Pool ; and from thence it
goes parallel with the Severn, passes Berriew and
Garth mill to the Severn at Newtown in Mont<-
gomeryshire. This canal is TJ miles long besides
the cuts, and the lockage is 225 feet. The cut to
Guilsfield is 3^ miles, and level. This canal joining
the EUcsmere canal, affords a ready conveyance to
Shrewsbury and Chester ; and should the intended
canal from Newtown by Ludlow be made with a
junction to the Leominster canal, it will open a com-
munication highly advantageous to the south parts of
the rivern Severn.

The company have the customary powers ; the
breadth allowed is 24 yards, and not to deviate above
100 yards from the line laid down. Lledan, Country-
house, nor Llivior Brooks are to have any water
taken from them, unless for puddling the canal.
The company are empowered to raise 72,000/. in
lOO/. shares, and may raise 20,000 /. more if wanted.
The exemptions as usual, all manures for land, and
all materials for making or mending roads.

Quarries of lime- stone, free-stone, slate, &c. as
well as mines of coal, lead, and other minerals, are
found on the borders of this canal its whole length,
which will find a ready and cheap conveyance to a
certain market, to the great emolument of the
owners as well as to the consumers and mafiu^
facturers.

River Nen Navigation, to amend.

An act was in the session of 34 Geo. III. granted
for bettering the navigation of the Nen river, be*
tween Thrapston and Peterborough. A number of

342 INLAND NAVIGATION.

new clauses in this act are to explain and amend the
former one, and nine commissioners are elected, who
are to appoint an overseer or surveyor of the works^
by whose direction only they are to be executed. ,

Oxford Canal, to amend.

This act was also obtained 34 Geo. IIL to grant
further powers and remedy the defects in former
acts; it also increases the commissioners* qualifi-
cations to fix a price for goods under a quarter of a
ton ; a list of the prices is to be printed and fixed up
at their wharfs. The clauses also of a former act
are repealed relative to making four and in some
cases five per cent, dividend, till the interest of the
money borrowed be paid.

Nov. 1 802. Remarks on the Progress of Canalu

The Oxford capal dividend is 11/. the shares 276 /• a rising
concern, .

Peak Forest Canal.

This is another act obtained 34 Geo. III. This
canal forms a junction of the Ashton and Oldham
canal, at Ashton-under-Lyne, in Cheshire; then
crossing the Tame river passes Denton, Chad-Kirk,
Maple-Chapel, Disley, to Whaley Bridge; from
thence to Chapel-in-le-Frith a rail-way goes to
Load's Knowl in the Peak Forest, in Derbyshire ;
from Chad- Kirk the canal goes parallel with the river
Goyf, and is 15 miles long, and 6 miles the rail-
way.

The company have the usual powers ; the canal,
&c. 24 yards broad, and 100' yards are allowed for
deviation* Flood-water only to be had from the

INLAND NAVreATION. ^43

fivers in its course, but may take and use waters
from mines. pO,000/. are allowed to be raised and
divided into lOO/. shares, and no one person to have
more than 5 votes ; 6o,000/. more may be raised if
-Wanted.

Manchester, Ashton, Stockport, and several other
towns and villages will feel the benefit of this canal,
in getting the Peak Forest lime, coals, &c. &c. at a
cheap and easy rate, as also other articles for the
manufacturer. •

Nov. 1 S0?« Remarks on the Progress of C finals m
The Peak Forest canal bears a premium of loL

RocHDALB Canal.
This act was also obtained S4 Geo. III. The

■

canal unites with the Calder navigation at Sowerby,
Bridge Wharf at Halifax, Yorkshire, and proceeds
along the side of that river to Hebden Bridge, and
to Todmarden ; it then goes through a tunnel 1^
mile to Littleborough, Rochdale, Middleton, Fails-
worth, and through Manchester to Castlefield, where
it unites with the Duke of Bridgewater's navigation.
A cut of half a mile goes to Rochdale ; and from
Pailsworth to Hollingwood Chapel is another cut of
little more than half a mile.

This canal is 3 J 4- miles long, with 6l3 feet lock-
age, that is to say, from where it joins the Calder
river to Hebden Biidge 5^- miles, and 75 feet rise;
thence to Todmarden 4 miles, and 96 feet rise ; then
to Travis Mill l-j- mile, and 104 feet rise ; then to Cleg-
Hall 5\ miles the summit, and level ; thence to Lower
Place near Rochdale two miles, and 62 feet fall ; then
to Chaderton Brook, by Middleton^4i miles, and

344 INLAND NAVIGATION.

1 20 feet fall ; then to Failsworth 2^ miles, level :
thence to Manchester 44. miles, and 81 feet fall ;
then to the junction of the Duke of Bridge waiter's
canal 1 mile, and 75-J- feet fall. The two cuts level.

The company have the usual powers ; and arc to
indemnify the Duke of Bridgewater for the losses he
may sustain in his wharfs, &c. at Castle-hill ; his
Grace is allowed certain tolls herein specified. The
Jocks on this canal are to be of the same length and .
breadth as the Duke's on his canal. There are also
restrictions for protecting the mills on the Irwell,
Roach, and Irk rivers. The canal, &c. to be 30
yards broad, except at Slack's Brook, and there only
8 yards, and not to deviate more than 60 yards from
the line. Inclined planes may be used, and reser-
voirs arc to be at the end of the tunnel.

Branches may be made, and rail-ways to join the
canal for the conveniency of mines or coal-works
that may hereafter be found.

The Ashton and Oldham canal may join this canal
at Piccadilly in the town of Manchester, so that the
waters of both are on a level ; all the overplus water
is to be turned into the Duke's tunnel at Bank Top.
The company are empowered to raise 291,900/. di-
vided into 100/. shares, and may raise 100,000/.
more if wanted, either by new shares or mortgage.
Manure for land, and materials for making or mending
roatjs are exempt ; as also all materials for building
or repairing any mills on the before mentioned rivers,
Steam engines within 20 yards of the canal may have
a supply 6f water from it, and return the overplus.
Boats of 1 5 tons, or less, must pay for that quantity
pn passing the locks.

IXLANB NAVIGATION. 345

. Halifax and Manchester must be particularly be-
nefited' by this canal, as coals, and all kinds of
minerals^ are abundantly plentiful in its whole course,
of .uphich those great manufacturing towns know full
well liow to avail themselves ; by this and the Duke's
canal to Liverpool, the Grand Trunk and Grand
Junction canals, will be taken cloths and other innu-
merable articles to Hull, London, and Bristol, and
from thence diffused to all parts of the globe,

Somerset Coal Canal.

This act is another ctf 34 Geo. IIL This canal
unites with the Avon and Kennet canal at Bradford,
Wilts, near Stoke Limley, and parallel with Mitford
Brook to Mitford Mill, where two cuts branch ofi^
one goes to Coombe Hay, through a tunnel -f. of a
mile long to Dunkerton, Camerton, and High Little-
ton, being 8 miles. From Mitford Mill it rises 138
feet ; the other cut goes by Wellow, Foxcote, Writh-
lington, and proceeds about a mile past Radstock
to the collieries at \Vclton, in Somersetshire, 7x
miles, and 138 feet rise. Several rail- ways are made
to this canaU

The company have the accustomed -powers, and
are not compelled to make rail-ways unless the land
owners give security to -such quantities of coals, as
by the t6nnage will produce sufficient interest for the
cost. Thirty yards broad allowed for canal, towing-
path, &c. and only 100 yards to deviate from the
Jine. Mr. Stephens's works, as well as others, are
not to be molested, and the canal is to be on a level
with the Kennet and Avon canal. The company arc
authorised to raise 80,000/. divided into lOO/. shares,
and 40,000/f more if necessary.

346 INLAND NAVIGATION.

They are compelled to deduct 5 per cent on their .
profits until it raises a bank of 1000 /. and then to
purchase government securities to that amount, to
answer all demands whatever ; when it is reduced to
SOO/. the 5 per cent, shall go on again, and when
the profits shall be JO per cent, the tonnage on
coals shall be lowered ^d. per ton per mile.

Boats for pleasure and husbandry are allowed, for
land owners^ not exceeding 12 feet long arid 5 feet
wide.

By this canal Bath and Bristol will receive a con-
stant supply of coal from the coal-works the cuts
are made to, as well as the inhabitants of other towns
and large villages where it is much wanted.

<•
River Trent, to amend.

This act was granted 34 Greo. III. for the improvfe-
ment of the Trent navigation, and authorises the
company to make a cut or branch from the con-
fluence of the Grand Trunk canal and the Derwent
river, to cross the Erewash canal and river; then
pass Beestbn, where thiefe is a lock which forms a
junction with the Nottingham canal at that town,
and enters the Trent at Trent Bridge. This cut is
10 miles long, and falls 28 feet ; 21 shoals and 2
bridges are avoided in the river Trent in this short
length, which is 13 miles by the river.

The canal with towing-path, &c. is 20 yards
broad. The contents of former acts are enlarged in
this ; the company are so to improve the river as
always to have 2 feet 6 inches of water, that barges
of 40 tons may not be impeded in the navigation.
The capstem and machine at Nottingham are to be

INLAND NAVIGATION. 347

■

bought by this company for 500/. and the fishery ia*
the river ndt to be molested.

The sum of 13,000/. rftay be raised by the com-
pany, to be divided into 50 /. shares , and they may
borrow on the credit of the tolls 10,000/. more if
wanted. No rates or tolls are to be collected till the
whole 13,000/. is laid out and expended as mentioned
in the act. The profits of this cut are never to rise
above 7 per cent.

The sagacity and penetration of my old, esteemed,
and much respected master, Mr. Brindlcy, is evi-
dently in this canal in favour of his reply in the
House of Commons, that rivers were made to supply
canals.

^^ •

Wybrley and Essington Canal, extension.

This act was another granted in the session of 34
Grco. III. (and before mentioned when treating of
the former canal of this name), to extend this canal so
as to unite the Coventry canal at Huddlesford near
Litchfield ; and, added to our first account, I have to
mention, that from Birchill to Walsal, this goes up
to the coal-works at Lord's Hay near Wyerley ; it
then passes Pelsall Wood by Brown's Hills, and over
Cannock Heath to Litchfield, and joins the Coventry
canal opposite Huddlesford. At Cannock Heath a
cut is made to go by Walsal Wood, to Hay Head
lime works. This canal and the branches are 344.
miles long, and 264 feet fall from Cannock Heath
to the Coventry canal.

From Wolverhampton to Birchill is 74. miles, and
level ; from thence to lock l , on Cannock Heath,
8 miles, level ; and thence to the union 74. miles.
The cut to Wyerley Bank 34- miles, and that to

348 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Lord's Hay at Wyerley 2^ miles ; that to Hay Head
lime works 5^ miles, and all level. There is like-
wise a cut of the collieries in Ashmore Park. The
other branches formerly mentioned are relinquished.

The company have the usual powers, and they
arc to take no water from the Birmingham or Staf-
fordshire canal; they are empowered to raise 75,0007.
and 40,000/. more if wanted, divided into lOO/.
shares ; and they are also compelled to buy the first
company's shares that may not be satisfied with this
extended act, the conduit pipes at Litchfield arc not
to be damaged under a heavy penalty.

The produce of the coal and other valuable mines
of the Marquis of Stafford, Mr. Vernon, Mr. Anson,
and Mr. Pulteney will now find a way to market.
The canal being chiefly cut through ^commons and
waste land, the surface was but of little value;
but nature generally has so ordered it, that where
the surface is barren or mountainous, the bowels of
the earth make ample amends.

Wisbech Canal.

This act was obtained 34 Geo. III. and intends .
this canal to have a straight cut to join the Wisbech
river at the Old Sluice in the aforesaid town, pass
Elm, and at Outwell join Well Creek, and the old
river Nen, at Outwell, in Norfolk ; it is about
miles long.

The company have the customary powers, and
to be served with water from Wisbech river ; but
not to deviate more than 100 yards without con-
sent ; 20 yards are granted for the width of canal,
towing-path, &c. The old cottages by the side
of the old river are to be removed, and rebuilt
near Wisbech by the company ; and the Bishop

IKLAND iTAVItfATIOK. 34$

i>t Ely is empowered to grant them lands out of
the wastes of Wisbech and Barton.

The company may raise 14,000/. divided into shares
of 105/. each ; and may raise 6,000 /. more if wanted.
Officers and soldiers, their horses, arnls, and baggage,
and timber, or other stores for his Majesty^s service^
are exempt from any toll or rate ; as are also all
manures for lands, and materials for making or mend^
ing any public road ; also all materials that may be
wanted for . the use of the Bedford level, and hus-
bandry boats by owners of adjoining lands, which
are not to pass locks witliout paying.

The river Nen, from Outwell church to Sailtef s
Load is to be made properly navigable, and all boats
going into or out of this canal into the Nene or Well
Creek, are to pay 3d. for every ton of goods ; out
of which 100/. yearly to be paid to the commis-
sioners of the Nene navigation, and the residue to be
used for upholding the navigation between Outwell
and Salterns Load sluice. Boats that have paid this
toll are exempt from paying at Salter's Load or Stand
Ground sluices.

River Welland, Navigation, to amend..
This act is also another of 34 Geo. IIL and begins
with observing that the out- falls of the river Welland
jure defective, and appoints three commissioners to
carry it into execution ; they are directed to cleanse
the river Welland, from the lock at Vernatt's Drain
to Shepherd's Hole, in the parish of Surfleet, and
to make a dam at this place across the river to stop
the tide and the land floods ; and from thence to
make a cut navigable at or near Hooten's Gibbet,

350 INLAND NAVIGATION*

across the salt marshes to Wyberton roads^ by the
Ship alehouse^ near Boston, Lincolnshire.

The new cut beginning at Hooten*s Gibbet not
to be less than 4 feet below the pointings of the
present sluice, at the out-fall at Vernatt's Drain, and
to be continued on an inclined plane of 4 inches in
z nule to the end. The new cut to be 50 feet wide
at bottom, with a batter two feet oh each side for
every foot deep ; the forelands on the north side to
be 30 feet in width, and on the opposite side 50 feet;
the south bank to be 6o feet at its base, and 30 feet
wide at its top, and not less than 1 1 feet high ; the
liorth bank must be 10 feet at the base, and 6 feet
ut the top, and the same height. A new sea sluice
is likewise to be made with gates pointing both to
land and sea, the mud sill whereof to be laid 1 foot
under low water mark at Wyberton road^ ; the clear
water way must be 50 feet. A lock is to be made
by the side of this sluice 6o feet long and 8 feet
wide, fit for the boats, barges, &c. that navigate
thereon. Directions for the river adjoining are also
comprised in this act, tending principally to draining
the adjoining lands, of which they stand greatly in
need. For this purpose the commissioners are autho-
rised to levy taxes, and borrow money on the secu-
rity thereof to complete the work.

A new bridge is to be built over the canal at Fos-
dyke Inn ; and the road over Fosdyke-waslv is to be
rendered safe and useful to passengers and cattle in
all seasons and all tidesy for which accommodation
fixed tolls, &c. are expressed in the act; as are also
several useful regulations between the commissioners
and land owners, as also their tenants, for the mutual
benefit of all parties.

IXtAND NAriGAtlOK. 351

Wakwick an© Braun&ton Canal.

This act was obtained 34 Geo. IIL for making
this canal to unite with the Warwick and Birming-
ham cinal^ in the parish ef Bredbrook, in the town
of Warwick, where it crosses the river Avon and
passes Radford^ Offchurch, Long Itchington, and
there crosses the Watergall river, by Lemington^
Hastings^ Granborough, and there crosses the river
Leame^ then to Braunston, and joins . the Oxford
canal after running a course of 20 miles.

The company are allowed the usual powers. Tbo
canal, towing-path, &c. are to be 30 yards wide, but
not to deviate from the line without consent. Where
it joins the Warwick canal it must be level, and any
waste water of the last mentioned canal may be used
by the other. The rivers Avon and Leame, Saltish-
ford Brook, Myton Brook, or Priory-Mill- Pools,
are not to have any water taken from them.

The company are empowered to raise ] 00,000/. tq
be divided into lOO/. shares, and may raise 30,000/.
more if wanted* No one person is allowed to have;
above 15 shares. Several particular tolls and rates
of other canals uniting with this canal are guaranteed
by this to those companies, if their rates and dues
shall be reduced by means of this canal.

From Birmingham by land carriage to London is
no miles'; and by this canal, from its joining the
Braunston canal, is only 142 miles, which is a short
carriage by water. All the heavy goods from Bir-
mingham, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsal, and
the neighbouring manufactories will certainly for
cheapness as well as expedition go by thi^ cana^
to London.

552 INLAND NAVIGATION'.

Canals. 1795,

Ihr improving the Navigation of the river Itchin />/
the County of Southampton^ and to explain and
amend the l6 (ff 17 Car. II. and 7 Geo. III.

This act fot improving the river Itchin navigation,
(so as to make it navigable for boats, barges, and othef
vessels, passed in the year 1795) which runs from
Alresford through Winchester, to the sea near South-
ampton, directs, that a certain number of commissioners
therein named, should regulate, settle, and ascertain
reasonable rates and prices for the conveyance of
all kinds of goods thereon ; and for the more ready
performance thereof, the said river is to be widened
from Woodmill to the Roman Ditch-, and to be
made navigable and passable at all times for boats
and barges to low water mark at Bittern Faren,
nearly opposite to Northam Quay, and to supply
the same from all springs, brooks, water- courses,
&c. that may be found within 100 yards on each side
of the same ; and to make reservoirs if necessary *
also to make aqueducts, sluices, and locks, with
towing-paths on the banks and sides of the same,'
with warehouses, landing-places, cranes, ^rjd ajl other
works requisite, making satisfaction to the owtiers of
lands through which it is to pass, so as not to exceed
12 yards in breadth. Seven or more commissioners
to value all lands, adjust all difFerenccs, and assess
damages ; the whole is vested in James D*Arcy, esq.
his heirs and assigns, subject to certain specified in-
cumbrances, and is declared to be a public act.

ll7tAt7D NAVlGATID!r, 853

Newca«tle-undkr-Lyne Canal. 1795*

This canal begins at or near Stoke-upon-Trentj
Staffordshire, and goes to the town of Newcastlc-
under-Lyne ; the preamble sets forth, that the mak-
ing and maintaining a can^l for the navigation of
boats, barges, &c. from and out of the navigation
from the Trent to the Mersey, in apiece of land
called Quinton*s Wood in Stoke-upon-Trcnt, through
the village of Stoke aforesaid, between the works of
Thomas Wolfe and Josiah Spode in Stoke, to the
town of Newcastle-under-Lyne, and the works near
thereto, will be of great utility, and will materially
assist the agriculture of. the neighboarhood of the
said canal ; and the several persons hereinafter named
are desirous at their own cost and charges to make
and maintain the same, but cannot without the aid
of parliament.

This company is incorporated by the name of
the Newcastle-undet-Lyne Canal Company, and as
such are empowered to make and cut a canal* which,
with the towing-paths, drains, ditches, and fences,
shall not exceed 26 yards in breadth, except where
docks, baeins, or pens of water tnust'be made, and
with |[oi|ert to deviate 100 yards. No water to be
taken but of the river Trent, except at times of floods,
between December and the first of April, nor out of
the Trent and Mersey canal, nor from the spring pr
stream of water in the village of Stoke-upoft-Trent,
which supplies the engine of Thomas Wolfe, in Stoke
aforesaid, nor any water from the cut or canal of Sir
Kigel Bowyer Gresley, bart. No buildings to be
erected on the banks or towing-paths, except for the
use of the navigation ; satisfaction to be made, and

354 INLAND NAVIGATION.

parties disagreeing, to be settled by commissioners
named in the bill, and elected when any one dies
or refuses to act. The proprietors are empowered
to raise 7,000/. to be divided into 140 shares of
50 /. each, and to be deemed personal estate, and to
have a vote for every share ; but no one to have
more than six votes ; and in case /jOOO /. is not suf-
ficient, they are empowered to raise 3,000 /. more,
cither by subscription or mortgage, but no mort-
gagee to have a vote. Now follow the rates of
tonnage and wharfage, &c. as usual in all canal acts,
and the right of making locks, dams, tunnels, re*
servoirs, swivel and draw -bridges, reed bridges, &c.
&c. &c. And it is taken and deemed a public act.

IVELCHESTER TO LaNGPORT CaNAL. 1795.

This act was obtained in I/Qj, for improving the
navigation of the river Ivel, otherwise Yeo^ from the
town of Ivelchester to Bicknel bridge, in the county .
of Somerset, and for making a navigable canal from
thence into a certain drain called Portlake Rhine, in
the parish of Langport in the same couhly, and for
making the said drain navigable from thence to the
river Parret, below Great Bow bridge in the town
of Langport, and which will open a short and easy
communication between those places and the neigh-
bouring country, and will be productive ' of great
public ^advantage, but cannot be done without the
authority of parliament, which empowers a company
of proprietors to make a navigable cut through the
«evaral parishes of Ivelchestcr, Northover, and Somcr-
ton, Hamlet of Sock Dennis, the parish of Tintrn-
Imll, the Hamlets or Tythings of Milton Widcomb,
Longload, and Bowerhinton, all in the parish of

iKtAND NAVIGATION. 355

MartOck, the parishes of Long Sutton and Muchel-
ney, and of Huish-Episcopi, Langport, and Curry
Rivcll, all in the county of Somerset, to alter the
banks of the river and cut through adjoining lands,
to remove all 6bstructions, make locks and bridges,
erect toll houses, make towing-paths^ and basins
for boars to lie or pass each other ; and stones to be "
erected on the sides of the caftal at every half mile ;
and the company to raise 6,000 /. to complete the
said canal, and to be divided into shares at 50 /• a
share, and to be personal property, and may raise
2,000/. more if the first sum is inadequate; and
every share to have a vote or by proxy, but not for
more than 10 shares ; and it is taken and deemed a
public act, having the usual clauses and penalties of
all navigation acts.

N. B. The width of the canal, banks, and tow-
ing-paths is omitted in the act.

GfiAND Junction Canal to vary, in the
County op Hertford, 1795.

The preamble recites 33 Geo. III. cap. 80, by
which certain persons are incorporated by the style
of the Company of Proprietors of the Grand Junction
Canal, with power to, make a canal from the Oxford
canal at Braunston, to join the Thames at Brentford,
in such line as is described by certain plans and
books of reference therein mentioned ; and states
that great progress is made in the work, and that if
the company were allowed to deviate from the line
of a certain part of the canal, the high grounds in
the parish of Abbot's Langley might be avoided, and
a tunnel there rendered unnecessary ; it is therefore
enacted to repeal the deviation of the line of the

aa 2

3^6 INLAND NAVIGATIOX.

canal more than 1 00 yards, without the consent of
the land owners, within the parishes of Abbot's
Langley, King's Langley, Watford and Rickmans-
worth, in Hertfordshire, and permit the company to
deviate according to a new plan deposited at the office
of the clerk of the peace for Hertfordshire, in Sept.
1794. *■;

By this new plan the canal and its works may be
made through the pleasure grounds of the Earl of
Clarendon and the Earl of Essex, and any other
lands in the said parishes.

The towing-paths to be made within Grove Park,
and the pleasure grounds of the Earl of Clarendon
shall be carried on the east side of the canal, and not
exceed six feet in breadth without his consent. No
warehouses or other buildings shall be erected in the
Earl's pleasure grounds, nor any locks nor sluices
without his consent ; and the two ponds in the grove'
gardens, and the engine pond shall be kept full of
water from the canal, and which shall be kept on a
level with the water in the river ; and after the canal
is completed through such pleasure grounds, the
company shall make compensation to the Earl of
Clarendon for all damages occasioned by the canal,
and they shall keep it clean and neat and in good
repair ; and the right of fishery in the canal through
the Earl's lands shall belong to him ; and no barge,
boat, or vessel shall stop within the park, unless by
accident, or land or take on. board goods and {pas-
sengers to the Earl or his family, under forfeiture of
five pounds to the Earl.

The same clause is inserted to take place in the
grounds of the Earl of Essex, or Sir John Filmer,
as of the Earl of Clarendon, and if their fisheries

INLAND NAVIGATlQJff. 35/

shall be injured, or those of Thomas Marriot, esq. the
company to make it good ; as also the mills of
Thomas Tovcy of King's Langley, or William Smith
jof Abbot's LJmgley ; and proper watering places to
be left for cattle on the whole line of the navigation,
and also to supply the fish gpnds. The powers by
this recited act vested in the general committee,
or any nine of its members, may now be exercised
by the majority of the members present at any meef-
ing, being not less than seven. The company was
restrained from conveying coal, culm, or cinders on.
the canal, nearer to London than the mouth of the
tunnel to be made at Langley Bury ; and in conse-
quence of the deviation no such tunnel will now be
made ; it is therefore now * enacted, that no coal,
culm, or cinders, (except such as are carried and
used at the houses of the Earls of Clarendon and
Essex) shall be carried nearer to London than a
stone or post to be affixed within six n^onths after
passing the act, at the north-west end of Grove Park,
under forfeiture of the barge or vessel, and also 50 1.
And this act is taken and deemed a public act.

GfiAND Junction Canal faom Norwood to

Paddington. 1795.

The preamble recites 33 Geo. IIL cap. 80, for
making a navigable canal from the Oxford canal na-
vigation at Braunston in the cpunty of Northampton,
to join the river Thames at Brentford in the county
of Middlesex,, and also certain collateral cuts from
the said intended canal, whereby several persons are
made a body politic and corpoitate, by the style of
The Cortipany of Proprietors of the Grand Junction
Canal^ and states, that certain acts were passed in

358 INLAND NAVIGATION.

the last and present session of parliament for making
other navigable cuts to communicate with the Grand
Junction navigation ; and as^ by surveys lately taken,
it appears that a navigable cut may be made from
the Grand Junction canal in the precinct of Nor-
wood, m the county of Middlesex, to Paddington
in the same county, which cut will open a cheap and
easy conveyance as well for passengers as for supply-
ing provisions to the populous parishes of St. Mary-
le-bone, Paddington, and the western and north-
western parts of the metropolis, from the counties of
Middlesex, Bucks, Hertford, Northampton, and
Leicester, and also a direct communication for the
carriage of all manufactured articles from the several
manufacttiring towns in the north, north-east, and
north-west parts of the kingdom ; and will suppljr
at a reduced price, lime and other manure to the
lands upon the line of the intended cut, and will be
of public utility : It is therefore enacted, that the
said company may make a navigable cut fix)m the
Grand Junction can^ through Norwood aforessud,
in the parish of Hayes, Yeading in the said parish,
Nottholt, Greenford, Perrivale, Apperton in the
parish of Harrow Twyford, Willesden, Acton, Ham-
mersmith, Kensington, and St. Luke*s, Chelsea, in
the county of Middlesex, to Paddington ; and a
towing-path on each side, and do all works requisite
for making the navigation thereof, (it then recites
the former acts). The cut shall not be of greater
width at the surface of the water than 20 yards, ex-r
cept where docks or basins shall be made, or were
necessary for vessels to lie or pas^ each other, nor
more than 45 yards at any place ; and the towing-
paths, ditchcsi and fences, not to exceed 12 yards

INLAND NAVIGATION. 359

in breadth^ except where warehouses, cranes, or
weigh*beams may be erected, or wharfs for recep-
tion of goods conveyed on the cut. The plan de-
scribing the line pf the intended cut, and the lands
through which the same is to be carried, with a book
of reference, containing a list of the names of the
owners of such land, is deposited with the clerk of
the peace for Middlesex.

'Rie company shall not carry the cut into certain
lands now belonging to Thomas Wood, esq. Sir
John Morshead, bart. and Elizabeth his wife, and
Robert Thisdethwayte, esq. and Selina his wife, as
lessees of the see of London, situate between a small
inclosure of William Godfrey, esq. at West bourne
Green, in the parish of Paddington, and. the Edg-
ware Turnpike Road, or through any other lands
their property as lessees aforesaid, (except one field
called Upper Readings, at Westbourne Green) with-
out the consent of the land-owners and of the Bishop
of London.

No soil shall be dug by the company on Norths
Hyde-Heath, in the parishes of Heston and Cran-
ford, and the district of Norwood^ for making bricks
for their use.

The company are empowered to build and keep in
repair brick arched bridges, and reduce and raise the
rates, but not exceeding the sums.mentioned, and are
entitled to receive additional rates for any goods
which may remain on any wharf or quay, belonging
to them above three hours ; and no vessel under 20
tons burthen, nor any vessel used for carrying pas.-
sengers, or any other persons not employed in nar
vigating it, shall be used on the cut without the
consent of the company, upon pain of forfeiting 10 /.

360 INLAND NATI6ATI0N*

The tonnage of goods conveyed on this canal al
follows i for all lime and ashes passing westward upon
the cut to be used for manure, and for all other ma-
nure so passing, one penny per ton per mile.

For all Separate parcels, and other articles not ex-
ceeding 2cwt. each, and belonging and consigned
to different persons, one halfpenny per mile ; and
for all other things whatsoever three halfpence per
ton per mile. And this shall be deemed a public act.

WoBSLEY TO Pennington Canal. 1795.
The preamble states, that by virtue of three acts
of 32 & 33 Geo. II. and 2 Geo. III. the Duke of
Bridgewater hath completed a navigation from or
near Worsley mill, and Middlewood in the manor
of Worsley, in the county of Lancaster, over the
river Irwell to the town of Manchester, and •also
from Langford bridge to the river Mersey in the
county of Chester ; and as, by a survey lately taken,
it appears that a navigable cut may be made from
the said canal at Worsley to or near the town of
Leigh in the said county, which would be of great
benefit to all persons residing or having estates near
the line of such cut, and of public utility ; and a$
the Duke, being Lord of the nianor of Vporsley, and
proprietor of the said navigation, is desirous at his
own expense to make and maintain such navigable
cut : It is enacted, that he may make it from the prer
sent canal at Worsley to the township of Penning-
ton near the said town of Leigh, and may do all
things thereto requisite for maintaining and supply-
ing it with water, and making wharfs, quays, landing
places, weigh-beams, warehouses, bridges, and other
;vorks ; and in order thereto the Duke, his agenti

INLAND NAVIGATION* 364

^d servants, and all other persons^ commissioners,
bodies politic, &c. shall be invested with the like
authorities, and shall be subject to the like rules^
payments, penalties, and punishments as are men-t
tioned in the recited acts ; and the Duke is allowed
to demand for tonnage and wharfage 2s. 6d. per ton,
and may seize the vessel and goods for payment, and
if not redeemed in five jdays may be appraised and
sold. And this shall be deemed a public act.

Southampton and Salisbury Canal. 1 795.

The preamble states, that the making a navigable
canal from the town of Southampton through the
several parishes of Holy Rood, St. Lawrence, All
Saints, and St. Mary, within the said town and liber-
ties, and the parishes of Hill, otherwise Four Posts,
JVlilbrooke, and Red-bridge,, to join the Andover
canal at or near Red-bridge, in the county of South-
ampton, and to go out of the Andover canal at
or near Kimbridge Mill in the parish of Mitchel-
marsh in the said county, and through the several
parishes of Mitchelmarsh, Motti^font, Lockcrly,
East Dean, West Dean, East Grimstead, West Grim-
stead, Alderbury, Peter's Finger, Laverstock, Mil-
ford,. aftdAe parish* of St. Marrin in the city of
JNew $aruiH»in the cc^unty of Wilts, and also t cut
or brapiph out of the said canal at the town of South-
/iropton to the Winchester navigation at Northam,
in the parish of St. Mary, within the liberties of the
SAid town, to communicate with the Winchester navi-
gation in the river Itchin there, y.i\l be of grea$
public utility : Jfj is therefore enacted (here follows a
Jong list of names of the company of proprietors) that
they shall be incorpotated by the name of the Com*'

S62 INLAND NAVIGATION.

pany of Proprietors of the Southampton and Salis-
bury Canal ; and they may make the said canal and
collateral branch to Northam, in the course delineated
on the plan, or within 200 yards of the S2|,me, and
may. supply the canal and collateral branch with
water from any springs found in making them, or
within 1000 yards ; tnay make reservoirs, feeders^
aqueducts, tunnels, bridges, drains, wharfs,^ quays,
warehouses, landing places, roads, and conveniences
where requisite; particularly one public wharf,
quay, and landing-place in Southampton, Northam,
and New Sarum, or near thereto, making satis-
faction for damages. The company shall not alter
the present course of the Andover canal, or take
water therefrom ; but -they shall erect and maintain
flood-gates in their canal to regulate the height of
water, and to prevent taking water from the Andover
canal, and not exercise their powers in any garden,
orchard, yard, paddock, park, avenue, or planted
walk to any mansion-house without the consent of
the owner.

The Jands to be used for the canal, collateral
branch, towing-paths, &c. shall not exceed 30 yards
in breadth, nor exceed 100 yards in breadth where
it is necessary for vessels to lie or pass each other, or
for basin, wharf or crane. The company shall pud-
dle, where necessary, the sides of the canal through
all the lands, to prevent, as much as possible, the
water oozing through the sides.

The company are empowered to raise among them-
selves 56,000/. to be divided into shares of JCO/.
each, and no proprietor to have above 15 shares, un-
less they come by will. The 560 shares are each to
be personal estate ; and if that sum shall not be 5uf^

« *

XKLANP NAVIGATION. 363

£ r "' '^^ :; may raise a further sum of 30,000/. ia
100 L shares as before^ but no one person to have
above 10 shares, and half to be raised by the first
subscribers, and the other half by borrowing on mort-
gage at interest, on the credit of the navigation ;
every share to have a vote personally or by proxy,.
The canal and collateral branch shall be measured,
and stones erected on the sides thereof at every
quarter of a mile distance. It is taken and deemed
a public act, there being all the usual formalities and
descriptions as in all other.navigation acts, not worthy
repeating.

There is also a schedule containing the intended

width of the canal where deep cutting occurs in l6

different depths, regulated according to the act, from

§ feet to 35 feet in depth, and from 45 feet to

140 feet wide.

Wilts and Berks Canal.

The preamble states, that the making of a canal
from the river Thames or Isis at Abingdon, in Berk-
shire, to join the canal now making from the river

' Kennet to the river Avon at Trowbridge in Wiltshire,
and also several cuts hereinafter mentioned, will

; greatly facilitate and render less expensive the con-
veyance of all kinds of commodities not only to and
from several towns and places near the line of the
canal and cuts, but also to and from the ports of
London, and Bristol^ and will be of great public
utility ; It is therctfore enacted (then follows a long
list of the names of the company) that they shall be
a body politic and corpoxvitc, by the name of the
Company of Proprietors of the Wilts and Berks
tJapal Navigation, and they may make and keep

3d4 INLAND NAVIGATION.

navigable a canal from the river Thames or Isis, at
or near the town of Abingdon, in Berkshire, through
the towns of Wantage, Swindon, Wootton Basset,
Chippenham, and Melksham, to join the canal
now making from the river Kennet to the river
Avon at Trowbridge, in Wiltshire, and also a navi-
gable cut from the tifst mentioned canal, in "Breach
Field, in the parish of Wantage, in Berkshire, to
the town of Wantage, and also another cut from the
same canal in the Plough'd Field, in the parish 6f
Brimhill, in Wiltshire, toColne; and also another
cut from the same canal in a close of ground in the
parish of Chippenham, in Wiltshire, called the
Little Middle Ground, to the town of Chippenham ;
and to supply the canal with water from all springs
found in making the same, and from all rivers and
water courses within 2000 yards thereof; and may
make reservoirs, aqueducts, tunnels, bridges, steam- *^' .,
engines, weirs and other machines for such supply of
water ; also may erect toll- houses, warehouses, weigh-
ing-beams, cranes, fire-engines, make ways andxon-
veniences as they shall think requisite, and may also
take anv ?oiI or stone for the use of building, &c.
within the same distance, by paying the owners.

If the company shall deem it expedient that vessels
should be conveyed along any part of the hne by
rollers, inclined planes, or in any other manner than
by means of locks or sluices, they may cause the
same to be done. The lancfc to be used for the
canal shall not exceed 30 yards in breadth, except in
such places where any dock or reservoir shall be
made, or where the canal and tuts shall be raised
higher or cut more than feet deeper than the pre-
sent surface, and except in such places where vessels

•

INLAND NAVIGATIDK* 365

may lie or pass each other^ or where any warehouse,
wharf, or weighing beam shall be erected ; nor more
than 100 yards broad at any place, and no road
bridge should exceed 3 inches perpendicular to one
yard horizontal. The company may raise among
themselves lll^QOO/. in shares of lOO/. each, and ilo
person shall be possessed of fnore than 50 shares,
except the same shall come by will or law, on pain
of forfeiting all shares exceeding 50 to the company,
and the 1,1] 9 shares shall be numbered numerically;
and if that sum shall be found insufficient, they may
raise 150,000/. more by subscription or mortgage,
and the interest paid half-yearly. The canal to have
stones or posts marked on the sides or banks at
every half mile. This is deemed a public act.

N. B. A most unusual number of clauses are in^
serted in this bill to guard private property, and all
^^» the usual clauses in navigation acts.

Stbatpord- UPON -Avon Canal into thk
Warwick and Birmingham. «

The preamble recites act 33 Geo. III. cap. 112,
for making and maintaining a navigable canal from
the Worcester and Birmingham canal navigation, in
the parish of King's Norton, into the Borough of
Stratford-upon-Avon> and also certain collateral cuts
from the said canal, whereby several persons wer^
incorporated by the name of the Company of Pro-
prietors of the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal Naviga-
rion for making the said canal and other .works ; and
as by surveys lately made it appears that a navigable
cut may be made from the Stratford-upon-Avon
canal, in the parish of Irapworth, to the Warwick
and Birmingham canaV in the maiipr of Kingswoo$!l,

366 INLAND NAVlGATIO]Jf»

in the parish of Rowington and county of Warwick,
wkich will be of great utility : It is enacted, That
the said company may make and maintain a navi-
gable cut accordingly, with reservoirs, bridges^ and
other things that shall be requisite for supplying the
canal with water, as thcT^Fhltauthorised to do by the
recited act with respect ^J^ Stratford-upon-Avon
canal. A map of the tih|^ the intended cut, with
a book of refertoce, with the names of the land
owners, is left with the clerk of the peace for the
county of Warwick.

No water to be taken from the Warwick and Bir-
mingham canal, but use may be made of all springs
that may be cut through. In case the money raised
by the recited act shall be insufficient, 10,000/. more
may be raised. And this is deemed a public act.

N. B. This canal interfering with the Dudley and
Worcester canal, the rates of tonnage and numerous
clauses are inserted to provide against encroachments
and misunderstandings that may arise in those useful
undertakings ; but beings so difficult as well as useless
to explain here, I therefore purposely omit them, as
they cannot benefit the reader luiless upon the spot.

Watford to St. Albaxs Canal* ^795.

The preamble states, that an act was pasfid 33
C5b. lU. for making a canal from the Oxford canal
at Braunston to join the river Thames at 'Brentford,
in Middlesex, and by that, act several pei^sons afe
incorpojated by the name of the Company* of Pro-
prietors of the Grand Junction Canal for carrying it
into execution, and certain acts yk^re passed. ii> the
last and present session for making other navigable
cuts to communicate with the-j^Grand Junction navi-

INLAND NAVIGATION. 36/

gation ; and that by surveys which have been made

it appears,^ that a navigable cut may be made from
the Grand Junction canal at Watford to St. Albans^
which would be of great public utility : It is there-
fore enacted, That the said company may make a
navigable cut from the coHlAal cut from the Grand
Junction canal at Watfcm jCfKhc town of St. Albans,
through the parishes onflLjlJbrd, Bushey, Alden-
ham^ St. Stephen, and St. Peter, and do all things
requisite for completing the same; among others
they must build 7 road bridges 12 feet wide, at par-
ticular places therein mentioned.

The width of the canal and tewing-paths is not
mentioned in the act ; suppose it to be the same as
other collateral cuts out of the Grand Junction canaL

The company arc allowed to borrow 3000 /• at
intereiit ; and this is deemed a public act. Great
care is taken by a vast number of clauses to secure
private property, tonnage, and freightage, and to
pay off by instalments the money borrowed on the
credit of the navigation*

Grand Junction Canal, to finish. 1795*

The preamble recites 33 Geo. III. cap. 80, whereby
certain^ persons and their successors w€;;re incorporated
by th^P^style of the Company of Proprietors of the
Grand luQction Canal, and authorised to make a
navigable canal from the Oxford canal at Braunston,
in Northa,mptonshire, to join the river Thames at or
near Brentford, in the county of Middlesex, and
certain collateral cuts, and to raise money to defray
the expenses thereof,- not exceeding 6oo,000/. and by
34 Geo. IiLcap. 24, the said company are authorised
to make navigable cuts from Buckingham and Ay*

368 IJTLANl) NAVICjAflOK.

lesbuiy to communicate with the canal, and jI
cut from Wcndovcr to its summit, in the parish of
Tring and county of Hertford, for supplying the
canal with water ; and also an act of last session to
vary the course of part of the canal in Hertfordshire ;
and two other acts vi^re made, one for a cut out of
the said canal at Norwood, in Middlesex, to Padding-
ton, and the other cut from Watford to St. Albans,
in Hertfordshire ; and as the said company are pro-
ceeding in making the canal, and have already com-
pleted a considerable part thereof, in which they have
expended a large sum of money, but find the
600,000/. will not be sufficient to complete the same,
it is therefore enacted that the company may raise
225,000/. more to finish the works authorised by the
said act, and if raised by subscription to be divided
into 4500 half shares of 50/. each, which half shares
shall be numbered to correspond with the numbers
of the shares, and shall be deemed personal estate ;
and the subscribers to the half shares shall be incor-
porated with the company, wiih the qualification to
vote. Two half shares shall be equal to one share,
but no proprietor shall be entitled to vote for a single
half share. The 225,000/. may be borrowed at in-
terest, or raised by annuities, and assign the naviga-.
tion and rates for security. Mile stones toi>e erected
on the sides of the canal.

As the commissioners by the first recited act have
set out 68 acres 1 rood and 22 perches* of 4and upon

Aldenham common, in the parish of Aldenham, in
Hertfordshire, for a reservoir for -collecting flood-
waters to supply the Gadne anrf.CoIhe rivers for thcf
benefit of the mills thereon with k quantity of water
equal to what will be taken therefrom for the use of

IKI^AND NAVIGATIOHT. 869

the . canal ; and the company are willing to .pay
2051 /. I2s. 6 J* for the absolute purchase of the land
so set out. - If it shall appear that the company want
a larger portion of the common, they may have not
exeeding 10 acres, and paying after the rate of 30/.
an acre. Nothing herein shi|| prejudice the right
of fishery the lord of the manor may be entitled
unto. This is deemed a'puhlic act, and gre*at care
is taken in the clauses to guaf d private property, as
also the profits to the proprietors by rates and
tolls, &c»

Thames and Sevehn Canal, to raise Money.

1796.
The preamble recites 23 Geo. III. cap. 38, for
making and tnaintaining a navigable canal from the
river Thames or Isis, at or near Lechlade, to join
and communicate with the Stroud water canal at
Walbridge, near the town of Stroud, whereby cer-
tain persons were incorporated by the name of The
Company of Proprietors of the Thames and Severn
Navigation, &c. with power to raise 130,000/. among
themselves, and if that sum should be insufficient,
to borrow at interest the further sum of 6o,000 /.
upon the credit of the undertaking. And as by 31
Geo. JIII. j;:ap. 67 9 they have borrowed that sum
of 60,000 /. and as the company have expended not
only the first sum, but also by far the greatcf part of
the last sun) ; and as there will be due to the sub-
scribers of original shares for interest to January 5,
1796, 37 /. lOs. upon each share, amounting in the
whole to 48,750/. ]||kl the company have incurred
other debts for arrctffti of interest for monies borrowed
in order to prosecute the undertaking, which is now-

370 »LAXD NAVIGATION.

almost completed ; and as the company have occa-
sion for a larger sum of money than they are at
present enabled to raise, it is enacted, that the said
company may raise 65,000/. more, to be applied to
the uses before mentioned ; which sum of 65,000/.
shall be divided into 1300 half shares of 50/. each,
and be deemed personal estate, and be incorporated
with the company; and to vote, two half shares to be
equal to one share, but one single half share to have
no vote : and this to be deemed a public act. Great
care is taken to make the public calls agreeable to the
subscribers.

Warwick and Birmingham Canal, to amend.

1796.
The preamble recites 33 Geo. III. cap. 38,
whereby certain persons and their successors were in-
corporated by the style of The Company of Propri-
etors of the Warwick and Birmingham Canal
Navigation, and authorised to make a navigable
canal from or near the Saltisford, in the parish of
St. Mary, in the borough of Warwick, into or near
to Birmingham, to terminate at or near a navigable
canal in or near Birmingham, called the Digbeth
Branch of the Birmingham, and the Birmingham and
Fazeley Canal, and to raise towards the expense
thereof ] 00,000/. and if that sum be not sufficient
the further sum of 30,000 /. but doubts have arisen
whether the proprietors are compellable to raise
among themselves the latter sum, and as they have
already completed a great part of the canal, and ex-
pended a large sum of money, they find the afore-
said sums insufficient to finish the purposes of the
act, and the act has in some respects been found

IKLAND NAVlOATIOlf* 371

defective. It is eiiacted, that the clause in the re-
cited act, which enacts that the company may con-
tribute among themselves 30,000 /. shall be repealed,
and instead thereof they may raise 50,000 /. to be
applied in defraying the expense of completing the
canal and works, and to be divided into 1000 half
shares of 50 /. each^^ and deemed personal estate ;
and the subscribers shall be incorporated with the
company, and have a vote for every two shares, but
jiot for one single half share. And if the 50,000 /.
i^hall not be found sufficient, the company may
borrow at interest, on bond or mortgage of tolls
granted by the act, a further sum of 30,000 /. and
the interest thereof shall be paid half-yearly, in pre-
ference to any dividend to the company. By the
first act it is directed, that no person shall hold above
15 shares, it is now enacted that no person holds
above 25 shares^ unless they come by will, and
reckoning two half shares as one share : and this i3
deemed a public act.

N. B. Very few clauses are added, and those only
regarding the transfers and priority of payment and
'interest, with particulars respecting the different calls
and sums so called for, and how disposable, with th?
proper norices, &c.

Kennet and Avon Canal, to amend. 17Q6.
The preamble recites 34 Geo. Ill- cap. go, for
making a navigable canal from the river Kennet, at
or near Newbury, in the county of Berks, to the
river Avon at or near the city of Bath ; and also cer-
tain navigable cuts therein described, by which
several persons and their successors were incorporated
by (be Aaqie of Tbe Company of Proprietors of th^

B B 2

37^ INLAND NAVlftATION*.

Kennet and Avon Canal Navigation^ and states that
the company have begun the canal, and are desir&us
to finish it, but find on examination of the country,
that it will be more convenient to the public if, in-
stead of the line directed tq be pursued by the recited
act, they were empowertS^ to adopt a shorter and
more direct line from & pl|ce between Upper and
Lower Foxhangcr, in the ^hh of Rowd, in Wilt-
shire, to near Trowbridge, where the Wilts and
Berks canal was originally intended to join the Ken-
net and Avon canal, and to carry it from that place
to near Semington, through which the Wilts and
Berks canal will pass ; this will save a parallel canal
of three miles, and will make the Kennet and Avon
canal two miles shorter, and afford a more direct
passage for vessels between Chippenham, Calnc,
Melksham, and Devizes, and other parts eastward.
It also recites 35 Geo. HI. cap. 52, for making and
maintaining a^ canal froin the river Thames or Isis,
at or near the town of Abingdon, in the county of
Berks, to join the Kennet and Avon canal, at or
near the town of Trowbridge, in the county of
Wilts, and also tb. certain navigable cuts therein
described, (now follows a long chain of alterations
in the original line of the canal, to shorten the dis-
tance and dimimsh the expenses by numerous sur-
veys to ascertain the certainty of making such Tan-
ation. The plan and book of reference is deposited
with the clerks of the peace for the counries of
Wilts and Somerset, for the inspection of those con-
cerned in this most useful navigation), by which it
appears, that by varying the Jine and supplying the
canal with water by a steam-engine, will prevent the
necessity of a tunnel of upwards of two miks in

INLAXB NAVIGATION. .37*

length, and will be mote convenient to tbe -public.
And it also appears that the canal may be carried
across the river Avon, a little below Avon Cliff Mills,
ia the parishes of Westwood and Bradford, at a less
expense and less detrimopt to the mills ; and also b]f
thus varying the line j^ very expensive embankment
and aqueduct bridge m-oss Mitford valley^and brook
will be saved ; and at cd. the town of Trowbridge a
basin will be made, not exceeding 12g yards in
length and 6o in width ; and the canal, with towing-
paths, banks, drains, ditches, and fences, may be of
any width not exceeding 100 yards, and shall not
deviate more than 100 yards from the line of the
book of reference according to the last survey. The
company may make locks, bridges, wharfs, quays^
engines, tunnels, aqueducts, warehouses, and all
other matters or things for making ^nd maintaining
this navigable cut, as undjsr the firsferecited act.

The company shall complete* and.- open for the
navigation of vessels, the variation of the.e^qal, from
the place between Upper ajid Lower Foxhanger, to
the now intended junction with the Wilts and Berks
canal near Semington, within se^^en years* And from
thence to the first intended junctibn of the two panals
in Lady-down Farm, within I8» mosnths from the
passing of this act ; and from thenice to the junction
oftheKennet and Avon canal, with the Somerset*
shire coal canal^ with all possible dispatch ; and the
canal from the Xipvr intended junction near Seming*
ton, to the iirst intended junction in Lady-down
Farm^ shall be considered as part of the Kennet and
Avon canal navigation ; that the whole line of na^
irigarion by water fjrom Newbury to Bath may be thf

6^me Cofit^m ohly. TbiA shall be deemed a public
kct.

N. B, It does not appear that the company want<
10 raise any more money than the first recited act
tnabled them to do and sectire^ being 1 50,000 A

Grakd WisTEfbi Canal. I7g6.

The preamble states, that the making a navigable
Canal frdra the river Exe, near Topsham in Devon-
shire, to communicate with the river Tone, near
Taunton in Somersetshire, will open a communication
between the Severn and the British Channel, and
will be of great public utility ; and if certain navi-
gable cuts were made from the canal, it would tend
;reatly to improve the lands in the said counties i
it is therefore enacted. That (here follows a vast
number of names of proprietors), and their successors,
shall be incorporated -by the* name of The Company
of Proprietors of the Grand Western Canal, and
they may make a canal from the tideway in the
channel of \he riyer Exe, near the lower end of
Topsham, into the. river Tone, in the parish of
Bishop's Hull, ip^ Somersetshire, which canal will
pass through theiseyeral parishes of Topsham, Heavy-
tree, Sowton, Pirthoe, Honiton's Clyst, Broad Glyst,
Clyst St. Lawrence, Clyst Hydon, Plymtre^, CuU
lompton, Kentisbeer, UfFculme, Welland, Halber-
ton, Burlescombe, and Holcomb-Rogus, in Devon-
shire, and through the severjvl parishes <Jf A'shbrittle,
Kitsford, Langford, Budville, Thorn St. Margaret,
Wellington, Ninehead, Hill F]|irtrants, Bradford, and
J|Jshop*s-rtull, in Somersetshire ; and they may make
th^ following quts ; a cut from the canal ^n a field of

INLAND NAVIGATION. 375

Edmund Frost of Cullompton, into another field
of Ferdinand Mills in the sanne parish ; another cut
in a field of Richard Corner, of the parish of Bur-
lescombe, into another field of Thomas Hawks, in
the parish of Tiverton j,.and may make another cut
in a field of William j^rd, of ^'ellington, to ano-
ther field of John Slade^^hi^* canal and cuts are
described in a plan with a borfk of reference, and
deposited with the clerks of the peace for the coun-
ties of Devon and Somerset.

And the company may erect two reservoirs in the
valley of the river Culm, and two in the valley of the
rive» Tone, and make channels to convey water
therefrom. And they may supply the canal with
water from the rivers Culm and Tone, and from all
such springs as shall be found withip 2,000 yards of
the canal and cuts or reservoirs ; ^nd for that purpose
may make such feeders- and jq^educts, weirs, en-
gines, and other machines as thpyma^y^ think proper;
but the canal shall not deviate' more than 100 yards '
firom the line laid down in the.' plan and book of re^
ference. The canal shall not exceed ' 30 jrards in
width with its towing-path, bankj • and':fences, ex-
cept where any dock, basin, or fescrvoir shall be
made, or where it shall be raised hrgheror cut deeper
than six feet lower than the present" surface, and ex-t
cept in places allotted for vessels to lie in, or where
any wharf shall be made, or warehouse, crane, or
weighing-en^ne shall be erected ; nor more than 1 50
yards in any place, , except in a common.

If the company sh^l judge it expedient, they may
cause rollers, inclined planes, or other works to be
made at such places as they think proper, and the
same shall be considered as part of the canal. Th«

876 INLAND NAVIGATION.

road-bridges not to rise more than 2i inches in x
yard in length ; and if, on account of situation, a
swivel or wooden bridge would be more convenient
to the public than a bridge of stone or brick, that
the approach thereto cannot be made without great
expense or less ascent than 2^ inches in a yard in
length, they may have liberty to alter them to. ac-
commodate the public.

So much of the tivcr iTone as lies between the
canal in the parish of Bishop's Hull and Taunton
bridge, being the distance of 500 yards, shall be
deemed part of the canal, and shall be vested in the
company, who may cleanse and make navigable the
same,

. The company may raise among themselves such
sum as they think proper, not exceeding 220,000 /•
to be divided into shares of 100 /. each ; and no per-
son to be a proprietor of less than one share, or more
than 100, and every proprietor to have a vote for
each share, but not exceeding 20 by himself or
proxy. And if the said sum of 220,000/. be in-
sufficient, *they may raise 110,000/. more, either
amongst themselves or by the admission of new sub-
scribers, or borrow at interest the same. The canal,
when completed, shall be measured, and stones or
posts erected on the sides thereof to denote every
mile.

'. The company may make navigable cuts from the
canal to any place within the distance of five miles
thereof, and all such cuts when completed shall be
deemed part of the canal. And thi$ shall be deemed
^ public act. .

N. B. An uncommon number of clauses are enacted
jn this very long act to secure private property, and

INLAND NAVIGATION. 377

also to explain the power of the company. The ar*
tides of traffic are numerous, and the tonnage and
rates arc many, but chiefly the same as in all navi-
gation acts; but neither the length, rises or falU
arc given.

DoBSET AND SOMERSET CaNAL. 17 9^'

The preamble sets* forth, that the making and
maintaining a navigabfe canal from or near a place
called Gain's Cross, in the parish of Shillingstoa
Okeford, in Dorsetshire, to communicate with the
Kennet and Avon canal, at or near Widbrook, near
Bradford in Wiltshire ; and the navigable branch
hereafter described froin the intended canal, will
open an easy communication with many considerable
manufacturing places in the country through which
the same is intended to pass, and with the exten-
sive collieries near Mendip, in Somersetshire, and
will render the conveyance of goods less expensive,
and will be of great public utility ; it is therefore
enacted, that (now follow the names of a vast num-
ber of proprietors) and their successors, shall be in-
corporated by the name of The Company of Pro-
prietors of the Dorset and Somerset Navigation, and
may make a canal navigable for vessels from or near
a place called Gain's Cross, in the parish of Shil-
lingston Okeford, in Dorsetshire, through the parishes
of Shillingston Okeford, Okeford -Fitz-Pain, Ham-
moon, Sturminster, Newton, and Stalbridge in that
county, and through the parishes and townships of
Hcnstridge, Whitchurch, Yenston, Temple, Abbas
Coombe, Horsington, South Cheriton, North Che*
riton, Maperton, Wincanton, Charlton, Musgrove,
Shepton, Montague, South Brewham, North Brew-

378 INLAND NAVIGATION.

ham, Witham-Friary, Tnidoxhill, Nunney, Mars-
ton Bigot, Fromc Selwood, Roddcn, Standerwick,
Berkeley, Beckington, and Road, in Somersetshire ;
and through the parishes and townships of Wingfield,
Farleigh, and Bradford, in Wiltshire, to communi-
cate with the Kenneth apd Avon canal at or near
Widbrook, in the same county ; and also a branch
from the canal in the parish of Frome' Selwood,
through the parishes and townships of Frome Sel-
wood, Marston, Marston Bigot, Elm, MeDs, Ba-
bington, Kilmersdon, Halcombe, Stratton on the
Fosse, and Midsummer Norton, in Somersetshire,
to that part of Nettlebridge which is in Midsummer
Norton ; and may supply the canal and branch with
water from rivers, brooks, and water courses, within
2,00() yards thereof, and may make reservoirs within
that distance, feeders, aqueducts, and erect fire-
engines, or other machines ; may make rail-ways or
roads to ths canal ; may also make bridges, tunnels,
sluices, lo^rks; drains, wharfs, quays, warehouses,
landing plapfes, weighing beams, cranes, steam-
engines, dry docks, and other works requisite.

The lanjds to be used for the canal and branch,
with the towing-paths, ditches, drains, and fences,
shall not exceed 30 yards in width, except where any
dock, basin, or reservoir shall be made, or where the
canal or branch shall be raised higher or cut deeper
than six feet from the present surface, of the land,
or where vessels lie or pass each other, or where any
crane, wharf, warehouse, or landing-place for goods,
nor there more than 100 yards ; nor deviate from the
plan and book of reference lodged with the clerks of
the peace for the counties more than 100 yards.
The company are empowered to use rollers if neces-

jary, or inclined planes, iron rail-ways, or any other
works they may think proper.

The company may raise among themselves
150,000/. to be divided into shares of 100/. each,
and each share entitles a persQh. to vote personally
or by proxy ; but no one- to give more than 20
votes, let his nmnber of sHwes be what they may.
And if the above sum is insufficient to complete the
canal and branch, they m^y raise 75,000/. more,
either among themselves or by admission of new
Subscribers, or borrow on interest. The canal shall
be measured, and stones or posts erected at every
half mile. The owners and occupiers of adjoining
lands may have pleasure boats on the canal, (not
passing through any lock) without paying any rate, so
as they are not made use of to convey goods or other
things, and so as not to obstruct the navigation ;
nor shall such pleasure boats be above Vl feet long,
nor above five feet broad. And this shall be deemed
a public act. V

N. B. There is a multimde of claqSts to secure
private property, especially in the mines ynxh which
the country abounds through which 'ifec. canal is
intended to pass, and by the number .of articles
enumerated in the rates of tonnage, this canal bids
fair to equal, if not surpass, most of the kinS in this
kingdom ; the usual navigation clauses are also plen-
tifully inserted in the act. The trade to the col-
lieries seems boundless, and will be of the utmost
importance to the consumer, the owner, and the
p^nal proprietor. •

380 inland navigation.

Somersetshire Coal Canal to the Kennet and
Avon Canal, to amend. 1796.

The preamble recites 34 Geo. III. cap. 86, for
maklDg and maintaining 9 navigable canal, with cer«
tain rail-ways and stone roads^ from several collieries
in the county of Sqmersct, to conununicate with the
intended Kennet and Avon * canal, in the parish of
Bradford, in the county of Wilts ; whereby several
persons therein named and their successors were in-
corporated by the name of the Company of Proprie-
tors of the Somersetshire Coal Canal Navigation, and
states that they have begun to make the canal, and
are desirous to finish it, but find on examination of
lands that it would be much more convenient to the
public if, instead of the line directed to be pursued
by the act, they were empowered to vary it on the
Radstock-line in three or four places, and on the
Dunkerton-line in several places, to the proposed
junction with the Radstock line, in the parish of
Southstoke, and also to vary the line of the canal
from such proposed junction of the said two lines,
to the proposed junction with the Kennet and Avon
canal on the west side of the river Avon, in the
parish of Monkton Coomb^ in the said county^
which variations will prevent the necessity of a tun-
nel, will pass through land of inferior value, will be
executed at much less expense, and will be more
convenient to the public than the present line,
if the said act was amended, and powers were given
to the company to make such variations ; it is there-
fore enacted, that the company may vary the canal
on the Radstock line from the western extremity of
an orchard on the north-west of Pigliness farm-house^

INLAND NAVIGATION. 381

in the parish of WcUow, and also on the Dunkerton
line to the proposed junction with the Radstock line
at Southstoke^ according to the plan and book of
reference deposited with the county clerks for the
inspection of all concen)ed» who may haire copies
thereof.

The company may do* all ^tters requisite for
making, maintaining, and using the variations, and
for making bridges, lock^ inclined planes, reservoirs^
wharfs, quays, landing-places, weigh-beams, cranes,
engines, and other things in as ample manner as they
are authorised to execute the works directed to be
made under the recited act, by which act the com-
pany was enabled to raise 40,000/. and this act not
authorising to raise another supply if wanted, leaves
a supposition that the above sum will complete ' the
work. This is deemed a public act.

N. B. There are a few clauses to secure private pro*
perty, and the usual clauses in navigation acts. By
the map of the country the variations appear much
for the better, as the coals will be delivered sooner
iand cheaper, which to the labourer and manufac-
turer is of great consequence, as well as to the owner.

Tamar Navigation. 1796.

The preamble sets forth, That making and main-
tainig the river Tamar navigable for vessels from
Morwellham Quay, in the parish of Tavistock, in
Devonshire, to or near a place called Boat Pool, near
Blanch Down, in the said parish ; and a canal from
Boat Pool to or near Tamarton-bridge, in the parish
of North Tainarton, in the county of Cornwall, and
a collateral cut from the canal at or near Poulson-
bridge, in the parish •f Lifton, in Devonshire, ta

ft82 INLAND SrAVlGA7I0K«

Richgrove Mill, in the parish of Launceston^ arfd
county of Cornwall, will greatly facilitate and render
less expensive the conveyance of goods ; will mate-
rially assist agriculture, and will be of great public
utility and advantage i^^lt is therefore enacted, that
(here follow the ^ifiies of proprietors) and their
successors shall be incorporated by the style of the
Company of Propriidhprs of the Tamar Manure Navi-
gation. And the cdifcjfeny may raise among themi-
selves 8] ,000/. for making the canal and other works,
which shall be divided into shares of 50/. each, and
no proprietor to have less than one or more than j OO
shares, which shall be deemed personal estate ; but
no person to have above 20 votes by himself or
proxy; and if the sum of 8I,000/. should not be
sufficient, they may raise 40,000/. more, either among
themselves, or admission of new subscribers^ or bor-
row on interest. *. ' ' .

The comparty '^Tc empowered to make the river
Tamar navigable for vessels, with cuts from Morwell-
ham Quay to Boat Pool near Blanch Down, in De-
vonshire-; and from thence a canal from Blanch
Pown through Tavistock, Lamerton, South Syden-
ham, Milton Abbot, Dunterton, Bradstone, Lifton,
Werrington, St. Giles in the Heath, Northcott,
Luffingcott,. Tctcott, and Clawton, all in the s^id
county, to or near Tamarton- bridge, in the parish
of North Tamarton, and county of Cornw;^!! ; and
a collateral cut from the intended canal at or near
Poulson bridge, in the parish of Lifton, in Devon-
shire, to Richgrove Mill, in the parish of St Stephen,
near Launceston, iA the county of Cornwall, through
the parishes of St. Stephen, St. Thomas, and 5tf
Mary Magdalen in the said county ; and t^o supply

INLAND NAVIGATIQSr. 883

the navigation with water from the river Tamar, and
from all springs and water courses found in cutting
the canal, or within 2000 yards from the head level
thereof, or within 1000 yards from any part, and
may make tunnels, aqueduct^ and channels, cleanse^
deepen, or straighten streams j|t water courses, and
may make bridges, locks,, flood-^ates, weirs, dams,
drains, wharfs, quays, warehfMses, landing places^
weighing beams, cranes, HA "engines, dry docks,
roads, and other works and conveniences where re*
quisite* They may also cause rollers, inclined planes,
rail-ways, or other works to be made for that pur^-
pose, which shall be considered as part of the navir^
gation ; every lock shall be of the width, in the
clear, of 5 feet, or of g feet Q inches, or of some
intermediate width between the said dimensions, and
of the length of 1 2 feet 6 inches, or of some muU
tiple thereof. Exclusive of the space necessary for
opening the lock-gates, the breadth* of the canal,
towing-paths, ditches, drains, and fences not to ex-
ceed 25 yards, except where a dock, basin or pea
of water shall be made, or where the (i^nal shall be
raised higher or cut above 5 feet deeper than the
surface, and where it shall be judged proper for ves«
sels to lie or pass each each other, or where any
warehouses, weighing beams, cranes or wharfs may
be erected.

The company may use certain lands at or hear
Blanch Down House near Blanch Down, for making
a basin, warehouses, cranes, wharfs, and watch-houses,
but not to exceed 2 acres.

To naake compensation for the injury the fishery
Id Calstock pool, and other parts of the river Tamar,
beloAging to the Prince of Wales in right of his

384^ INLAND NAVIGATION.

Duchy of Cornwall, and held by Lord Edgecombe^
they agree to give 200/. a year for the remainder of
the lease of 99 years, from 1 7 p I , and the same sum
yearly to his Royal Highness when it reverts into hrs
hands. A plan and book of reference is deposited
tvith the clerk of the counties for inspection, and the
canal shall not deviate from the line laid down there
more than 100 yards, without consent of the land
owners. This shall be taken and deemed a public
act.

N. B. There are a number of clauses to secure
private property, especially corn mill^ as well as
others, and particularly so in being permitted to
purchase and. pull down Tetcott mills, Noithcott
mill, and Bradstone mill. There are also the usual
clauses as enacted, in all navigation acts, such as
mines, minerals; maugfactures, &c. &c. &c.

* ft

LEOMINSTfeR-CANlL, TO COMPLETE. 179&*

The preamble* states, that by an act of 3i Geo-
III. cap. .69, fo^ making and maintaining a navigable
canal from Kington, in the county of Hereford, by
or through Leominster, to join the river Severn, near
Stdurport bridge, seyenri ^jersons are incorporated
by the name of tSe G^inpaoj^ot l^roprietors of the
Leominster Canal Navigation, and are authorised to
make the said canal, and raise money to defray the
expense not exceeding J 9O5OOO /. and as it will re-
quire a further sum to complete the same, it is enacted
that the company may raise among themselves^ or
admit new subscribers towards raising anysum not
exceeding 1 80,000 /. to be diyided into new shares
of the like value as the shares created by virtue of
the recited act, or on interest by way of mortgage

tNLANtt NAVlbATIOlSr. 383

bf bbhd, and the money so to be raised shall bfe ap-
Jilied in defraying the expense of finishing the canal
tnd its works, which new shares shall be deemed
J)ersonal estate, ^nd the subscribers of the new shares
shall become proprietors^ ahd be incorporated with
the cotnpany ; and the several powers and provisions
contained in the recited act shall be extended to the
calling for, raising, and recovering the subscriptions
for the new shares, and for transferring and entering
the same in like manner as if the sutns so to be sub-
scribed were part of the money authorised to be
iaised by virtue of the recited slcU And this is
deemed a public act.

The Ellesmeue CanAl, Td EictEi^D and vary.

1796.

The preamble states, that by: an act of 33 Geo. IlL
cap. gi, for making and m'kintaining a. navigable
canal from the river Severn, at Shrewsbury, &c. cer--
tain persdns were incbrporated by tlie name of The
Company of Proprietors of the EUesmere Canal, and
Were empowered to make and maintain the said canal,
and were to raise amoi^g themselves such sums as
the act mentionedj ^pd as thtcompany have begun
to make, the canaili and ^lavc ' raised a considerable
sum, part whereof has been laid out in this under-
takings but it is found that the powers given by the
recited act require to be amended ; and as it appears,
on a re-survey of the country of those parts of the
canal which remain unfinished, that it will be con-
venient to vary some parts of the line, and to make
and maintain several other collateral cuts to.commu*
nicate therewith, ' which will be of great public
utility; it is therefore enacted, that the company

386 INLAND NAVIGATION.

shall be empowered to vary and alter the canal and
cuts as hereinafter mentioned : three collateral cuts
are now specifically mentioned: and which additional
branches of the EUesmere canal are intended to be
made and pass through thjP parishes of Whittington,
Ellesmere, Welchampton,' ftrees, Whitchurch, and
Wem, and the townships *; of Francton, Tctchill,
Birch) and Lythe, EBe«o<{fc, Oatley, Newton, and
Spoonbill, Lineal, Wefchampton, Whixhall, Til
stock, Alkington, Dodington, Steel, Frees, Edstas-
ton, and Cotton, in Shropshire, and through the
parish of Hunmer, and the townships of Bettesfield
and Brunnington, in Flintshire ; and the Ellesmere
canal company may make, erect, and perform all
such works and things as shall be requisite for mak-
ing and maintaining the several variations, additional
branches, and extensions of the canal and cuts, and
for these purposes shall have and enjoy the like
powers as are granted by the recited act of 33 Geo.
III. and the recited act shall, so far as the nature and
circumstances of the case will admit, extend to,
and shall put in execution in making and using the
variations, additional branches, and extensions, and
for the punishments of offences, and for the selling
and conveying of premises, and ascertaining, their
value, and assessing of damages, and all other matters
which shall arise in consequence of making and using
the variations, additional branches, and extensions ;
and shall also be used and exercised by the owners
of premises ; and the commissioners under the re-
cited act of 33 Geo. III. shall be commissioners for
the purposes of this act.

A plan and book of reference shall be left with
the clerks of the peace of the counties of Salop an4

iNLAND IfAVlOATIOir. 887

^iht) and with the clerk of the company, for per*
\isal of the canal and variations with the collateral
cuts ; and as by the recited act the lands to be taken
for the canaV should not exceed in any place a5
yards In breadth^ and if that breadth is insufficient.
It is enacted, that in al)« c^es where it shall appear
to the commissioners, df any seven of them, that a
greater breadth than 4Sty^^^ of land should be
taken, the company may take such further width as
shall appear reasonable ; and the amount of the pur*
chase- money, and of damages; to be ascertained^
paid, and disposed of in like manner, subject to the
verdict of a jury, as by the recited act is directed
in respect to lands. And this is deemed a public
act.

N. B. There are a vast many long clauses for se-i^
curing private property, and explaining the natiu-c
and course of the variations and extensions, as also
several other intended junctions and surveys, intend*
ing seemingly to ^pply again to parliament for fur-
ther powers to extend this canal and its branches into
other navigations for the promoting trade and com->
tHerce; the usual navigation clauses are also in«
serted.

Warwick: and Braunston Caxai., to var^ano

AM£ND :

^nJ now to he called the Warwick and Naj^ton

Caml \ 796. ,
The preamble stares, that by 34 Geo. III. cap,
38, certain persons, incorporated by the style of
The Company of Proprietors of the Warwick and
Braunstop Canal Navigation, were authorised to make
a navigable canal from the Warwick and Birming«

c c 2

388 IK LAND NAVIGATION.

ham canal, in the parish of Budbirooke, in Warwick^
ihirc, into the Oxford canal at Braunston, in Nor-
thamptonshire ; and as the company, having made
great progress in. the canal, now find that if the same
was to be completed in the line prescribed between
the Fosse Road, in thj5 parish of OfFchurch, in War-
wickshire, and the parish of Braunston, it would be
attended with much* inconvenience, as a tunnel of
more than 800 yavls in length must be made thereon;
and as the company have caused surveys to be made,
that line of the canal may be abandoned, and in-
stead thereof carried from the Fosse Road, through
a part of the parish .of OfFchurch, and the parishes
of Bascote, Long Etchington, Stockton, Burding-
bury, Lemington, Hastings, Bradwell, Grand.sbo-
rough, Caldecot, and ifJapton, to join the Oxford
canal, in the parish of Napton, in Warwickshire,
and may make, erect, and perform all such works
and things as shall be requisite for making and main-
taining the canal, and supplying the same with water,
and the powers of the recited act, so far as the na-
ture and circumstances of the case will admit, sub-
ject to the several alterations and amendments hereby
made, shall be exercised by the company^ and shall
be applied and put in execution ibr inking and
maintaining the said 'part of ^Ihe canalvVapd' other
necessary works, and for defraying the fcxj)ehcc$
thereof. •

The company shall be incorporated by the name
of The Company of Proprietors of the Warwick and
Napton Canal Navigation, instead of their present
^tyle ; and the canal shall be called The Warwick
and Napton Canal Navigation.'

INLAN1> NATWATIOW. , S8§

A plan and book of reference shall be deposited
if^ith the clerk of the peace for Warwickshire, and
another with the clerk of the company, to which all
persons naay resort ; and the company, in making the
canal, shall not deviate firom the course delineated oa
the plan.

In case the sum of 100,000 /. authorised to be
raised by the recited act, shall be found insufficient
for making and maintaining the canal and other
works, the company may raise among themselves,
or borrow at interest, on mortgage or bond, 30,000/.
and if any of the proprietors shsdl pay any proportion
of such further sum, the company shall order a
proportionate share of the dividends to be paid to
them, over and above the dividends payable on their
original shares. And this shall be deemed a public
act.

N. B. There is in this act a vast number: of clauses
for securing private property, as well as the property
of other canals which this canal interferes with ; and
if one may be permitted to form a judgment fcom
the large sums of 5,000 /. and 10,(XX)/. yearly paid
to other cainals, and the^ locdity of this canal with
coals, mio^s,'. and minerals, with lime, lime- stone, and
manure, togetKer also as being us it were in the
heart oir manufactures and manufactories, we may
venture *ta pronounce it a most lucrative and usefid
navigation ; the usual navigation clauses are also in-
serted and enforced in this amended and enlarge4
»ct.

I .

SQO nOAKB KAVIOATIOir^

ElLESMEXB CaNAJLj to VAKT ANP £XTEW4> Til

RUABON. 1796.

The preamble states, that by 33 Geo. III. cap,
91, for making and maiDtaihing a navigable canal
from the river Severn at SJKrewsbury, certain persons,
therein named, wjth sucK other persons, bodies po^r
litici &c. as should be appointed, were incorporated
by the name of The Company of Proprietors of the
Ellesmere Canal Navigation^ who were empowered
to make the above canal ; and by an act of this ses-.
aion to explain an^ amend the above act, the com-
pany have been empowered to vary the line of the
canal aqd cuts between Francton Comipon and
Whitchurch, and to make and maintain several new
branches to communicate therewith, and such adr
ditional and collateral cuts will be of great public
Utility : It is therefore enacted, that the company
shall vary the line originally intended for the canal,
and maintain a new branch from the canal at or near
Foqt-Cysylty, in the parish of Kuabon, in Denbigh*
shire ; an4 from a part of such intended new branch
of the canal on Cefu Common, in the parish of Rua*
bon, to the turnpike road leading to Acre£iir coal«
works, in Denbighshire ; and from a part, of the new
branch of the canal, in the parish of Gresford, in
the county aforesaid, to or near the Falwem coal-
works, in the parish of Mold, in Flintshire ; and
from Gresford to a field near the river Allen, in the.
township of Allinglron, Denbighshire ; which several
variations and extensions of the Ellesmere canal will
pass through the parishes of Ruabon, Wrexham,
and Gresford, and townships qf Christioneth, Ken-
rick^ Bodyiton^ Rhyddalt^ Morton Above, Mortoa

INLAND NAVIGATION, BQl

Below, Esclusham Below, Bersham, Broughton and
Brumbo, in Denbighshire ; the parishes of Grcs-
ford, Hope, and Mold, and townships of Marford,
Uch-y-Mynydd-Ucha, Uch-y-Mynydd-Issa, and
Tryddin, in Flintshire; the parishes of Pulford,
Dodleston, and St, Mary^n-the-Hill, and the town-
ships of Pulford, Dodteston, and Marston-cum-
Leach, in Cheshire, the parish of St. Mary-on-the-
Hill, and a place called Saltney Side, in Chester ;
and the company shall make and perform all works
and things requisite for making and maintaining the
several variations, additional branches and extensions
of the canal and cuts hereby authorised to be made,
and shall have the like powers in the lands through
which the same shall be made as are given by the
recited act of 33 Geo. III. or by the recited act of
this session. A survey has been made, and a plan
with a book of reference is deposited with the clerks
of the counties through which the canal passes, and
with the clerk of the company ; and the works not
to deviate more than ICX) yards from the course de-
lineated in the plans. And this is deemed a public
act.

N. B. Numerous are the clauses in this bill for
securing private property to individuals, which would
be both tedious and useless to the majority of the
readers, especially the uncouth names of the places
in Wales. Those who are interested ^nd want further
information, can apply to the clerk of the company
or county. It appears several other branches ancj
cuts, if not independent canals for navigation, are in
agitation, for Messrs. Jessop and Dadford, engineers,
have been employed by this company for further
extensions, which have been found practicable. Thi^

3g2 INLAND NAVIGATION*

canal^ intersecting with the river Dee company and
Chester canal, makes the bill appear copfused an4
not easily explained by often repetition, but on the
spot. The usual clause9 in all navigation acts are
adso inserted,

Lancastjsr Canal, to vary and amend, 1796.
The preamble states, that by 32 Geo. IIL cap,
101, for making and maintaining a navigable canal
from Kirkby Kendal, in the county of Westmorland,
to West Houghton, in the county palatine of Lan-»
(raster, &c. several persons were incorporated by thq
nam^ of The Compiiny of Proprietors of the Lan-
<;astcr Canal Navigation, and they were restricted
from deviating more than 100 yards from the course
marked qn the plan and set forth in the book of re-
ference ; and as it is found necessary to cut the canal
through certain lands, parcel of the possessions of
his Majesty-s Duchy of Lancaster, according to the
line described in the recited act, it is also necessary
to alter (h^ original line in spm^ parts, and as his
Majesty is not by virtue of the recited act, empowered
to sell any land in fee, for the purpose of carrying
on the works of the capal, and as it is conceived that
the proposed Unc will prove bepeficial to the lands^
^s well as of general utility : It is enacted, that the
Chancellor and Council of the Duchy of Lancaster
may sell and assure in the name of his M^esty, under
the seal of the Duchy, to the use of the company,
for a reasonable price, §0 much of the lands before^
mentioned as shall be necessary for the purposes
aforesaid, and whkrh shall be set out in pursuance
Qf the directions in the recited act of 32 Gep. JII^
subject to tlie regulations there^x i^entioqed;^ (^^ccj^t; '

INLAND NAVIGATION'* 803

$o &r aS the same are altered by this act) for a rea*t
ponable sum ; and on payment of the sum agreed oa
between the parties, the Chancellor, by any dee4
under the seal of the Duchy in the name of his Ma»
jesty, may convey the lands to the company, which
deed being enrolled in the court of the Duchy
chamber within 12 months from the datc^ shall bo
valid.

The purchase-money shall be paid by the com«
pany to the Receiver General of the revenues of the
Duchy, and shall be applied as the Chancellor and
Council shall appoint, according to the provisions of
en act of ig Geo. III. to enable the Chancellor and
Council of the Duchy of Lancaster to sell and djs*
pose of certain fee ferm rents, &c.

Saving to all persons and bodies politic, Sec, (ex<*
cept the King in right of his Duchy of Lancaster)
all such estate and interest which they could have
enjoyed in the premises hereby granted in case this
act had not beep nuule.

This shall be allowed in all courts as a public act.

.Dudley Canax., to ambnd. 1796.

The preamble recites three acts of the l6th, 25 th,
^nd 30th Geo. III. whereby divers powers weregivea
for making and maintaining a navigable canal within
^nd from certain lands belonging to Thomas Talbot
Foley, esq. in the parish of Dudley, in Worcester-^
shire, tp comqf^unicate :with the Stourbridge navi*
gation .at Blackdelph«upon-Pensnett Chase, in the
|;<arish of King$winford, in Staffordshire, and for mak-
ing an ejctension of the said canal to the Birmingham
canal at or near Tipton Green, in the same county,
40d several pcr^QflS Wif re for tfecs^ purjposes incorpo*

3gQ INLAND NATIGATIQlf.

.Cornwall, to or near Dunmeer bridge, in the parish of
Bodmin in the same county, and a collateral cut
therefrom at or near Cotton Wood, in the latter
parish, to or near Ruthcrn bridge, in the san^ parish,
will greatly facilitate and render les^ expensive the
carriage of coals, timber, stone, and other articles,
will materially improve the agriculture of the ad-
joining country, and will be of great public advan^
tagc : It is therefore enacted. That (here follow the
names of the company of proprietors) and their suc^
cessors shall be incorporated by the style of the
Company of Proprietors of the Polbrock Canal, and
fthall have perpetual succession.

The company may contribute among themselves
18,000/. for making and maintaining the canal and
other works, which shall be divided into shares of
50/. each, and no. person shall be a proprietor of
less than one share, or of more than 100 shares, un-
less by will or marriage, and the shares shall be
/deemed personal estate ; every subscriber shall have
a vote, not exceeding 10 votes by himself or proxy.
The canal shall be made through the parishes be-
fore mentioned, and shall be supplied with water
from the river Camel or Allen, and from all rivers,
springs, or water courses found in making the same,
or within 2000 yards from the head level thereof, or
/any other part of the navigation^ May nuke tunnels,
aqueducts, and channels, cleanse, deepen, of straighen
all streams and water course^ which, may comimuni^
cate therewith, and may cut or raise the banks of
the river Camel, may also make bridges, locks, flood*
gates, wefirs, dams, drains wharfs, quays, warehouses,
landing places, weighing beams, cranes, <}re-€pgineS|

INLAND XAVIGATlONi SQJ

dry docks, or other machines and conveniericea^ where
requisite*

The lands to be taken for the canal and collateral
cut> towing-^patb, -ditches, drains^ and fences, shall
not exceed 30 yards in breadth, except where basins,
docks, or pens of water shall be made, or where the
navigation shall be raised higher or cut above 6 feet
deeper than the surface of the land, and where it
thall be judged proper fpr vessels to lie or pass each
other, or where any warehouses, cranes, or weighing
beams may be erected, or wharfs, or other places set
out for the reception of goods, . nor in such places
more than 153 yards in breadth without the consent
of the land owner. A plan and book of reference
are left with the clerk of the county, and with the
clerk of the company. -

The company may make use of certain lands at or
near Guinea Port, in the parish of St. Breock, near
Wadebridge, for making a basin, and may thereon
erect warehouses, cranes, w^ghing beams,fire engines,
and other buildings not e^s^cecding -2 acres, and they
may alter and make use of a road leading from
Guinea Port to Tregudick bridge, in the said parish,
for conveying articles to and from the canal. The
company may also make use of 2 acres of land near
Stoney Lane bridge, in the parish of Bodmin, for
making a basin and necessary erections for the use
and accommodation of those navigating on the canal;
-ms also on any part of the canal where necessary, the
company are empowered to ^nake tunnels, aqueducts,
arches, draines, trenches, water courses, watering
places for cattle, back drains, fences, towing-paths,
locks, sluices, cranes, engines, &c. And this shall
be deemed a public act.

3g8 INLAND NAviGATtOfri

N. B. The clauses to secure private property are
but few, being chiefly over an uncultivated country i
but the clauses tised in navigation ^cts afe multiplied^
By the rates and tolls, and the heavy goods the pro*
duce of the country passing thereon, it does appear
to be a most prooiislng, profitable undertaking.

• • •
Gkantham CanAW'to AWENii. 1797.

The preamble states^ that by ah act of 33 Gecu
III. cap 94, certain persons were incorporated by the
style of the Company of Proprietors of the Grantham
Canal Navig^rion, and were authorised to nuke a
navigable canal ffom Grantham in Lincolnshire^ to
the river Trent, near Nottingham, Trertt bridge, and
also a collateral cut from such canal at Cropwell
Butler to Bingham, in Nottinghamshire, and to raise
among themselves a cottlpetent sum for completing
the samci not exceeding 75,(XX)A and if that should
be insufficient, they rtiay raise 30,0;^ ^- rtxorc^ of which
20,000/. were to be raised by subscription, or shares
of 100/. each, by any member of the company,
and 10,000/. by mortgage; but doubts have arisen
whether the proprietors arc compellable to raise the
20,000/. among themselves; and states that the com-
pany have expended the 75,000/. and at a special
meeting, 28th Oct. 1795, invested their committee to
call upon the subscribers for 10 per cent, on the
original subscription, which they did, and directed
the same to be paid by the 8th December, 1 795 )
and on the 5th of May, 1796, being their general
annual assembly, the company made another call of
10 per cent, on the proprietors, and directed the
same to be paid the 8th of June, 1 796 ; and threcr
fourth parts of such two calls^ which amoiuu toget

INLAND KAVIGATIOK* 399

ther to 15,000/. have been already paid and ex-
pended in making the canal, but the residue of such
two calls still remains unpaid, several proprietors
resisting the payment thereof, although agreed to be
raised by the unanimous consent of the meeting ; and
the company have borrowed 5,200/. being as much
of the said 10,6oo/. as it Mp been in their power to
procure on mortgage, and have also incurred sundry
other debts in the prosecution of the undertaking,
and for arrears of interest on borrowed money, and
that the company have nearly completed their underr
taking ; but to enable them to finish it, and to liqui-
date the debts contracted, and to provide for the
general purposes of the undertaking, have occasion
for a larger sum than they have at present a power
to raise, and that tne recited act has been found
defective, (now follow various regulations for the
calls and payment of interest of the first and second
subscription and mortgage) and proceeds : So much
of the recited act as enables the company to raise
20,000/. or so' tnuch thereof as they might think
proper to raise by subscriptions or shares of lOO/.
each, by any proprietor of the company, or as en-
ables them to grant securities for shares of lOO/.
each of the said sum of 20,000/. shall be repealed,
and instead thereof the company may raise any sum
not exceeding 24,000 /. over and above 75,000/.
The 15,000/. hereby consolidated therewith, and the
10,000/. which they were empowered to borrow by
the recited acts, and the money so to be raised, shall
be applied in defraying the expense of completing
the works authorised to be done, and in discharging
the debts contracted, and the 24,000/. so to be
raised shall be divided into shares of i20/. each^

400 i^tksj} NAVi^&Atibsr.

and be deemed |>ersona] property, ai)d any prd/jrlctof
may subscribe for any number of shares therein, not
exceeding 5| and if not tilled by the old proprietors
new subscribers may be admitted, who shall not hold
tncfte than 1 6 shares^ and every new holder of sharei
of 120/* shall be entitled to give one vote for every
such share^ not exceeding 15. And thi^ shall be
deemed a public act.

N. B. The greatest care possible appears to have
been taken to secure subscribers, proprietors, and
mortgagees in this very complex business, and to fix
the calls and certainty of paying the interest regu-*-
larly, to induce monicd people to promote the navi«
gation*

Tbent and Mbrsey Canal, to extend. 1797.

The preamble states, that by 6 Geo. III. cap. gO,
for making a navigable canal frdm the river Trent, at
or near Wilden Ferry in the county of Derby, to
the river Mersey, at or near Runcorn Gap, certaia
persons therein named were incorporated by the name
of the Company of Proprietors of the Navigation
from the Trent to the Mersey, and were empowered
fo make and maintain the said canal ; that the com<«
pany have, in pursuance of the recited act, and of
10 Geo4 III. cap. 102^ and 15 Geo. III. cap. 20^
made and completed the canal; that by 16 Geo^
]IL cap. 32^ the company have made another canal
from the Trent and Mersey on the south side of
Harccastle to Froghall, and a rail- way from thence
to or near Caldon f that by 23 Geo. IIL cap. 33,
' the two canals were united and made one joint under-
taking ; that by a survey lately made it appears
that a canal may be made from the last mentioned

IJrtAKD NAVlCtATlOIT. 401

canal, which is now called the Caldon canal at En-
don, to Leek, in Staffordshire, which will open an
feasy commercial intercourse between the canals and
Leek, and be of public utility ; and that a reservoir
may be made, in Rudyerd Vale, with a trench from
such reservoir to the canal near Leek, which' will
afford a supply of water for the canals in all dry
seasons. It is enacted, that the company may take
and maintain a canal from the CaldoU canal at Endon,
to the town of Leek, and supply it with water, and
also may make a reservoir in Rudyerd Vale, in Staf-
fordshire, with a trench therefrom for conveying
water to canals, and also may form a communication
between the proposed canal and such part of the
Galdon canal as lies between Hazlehurst Wood, near
Endon and Froghall, and perform all such matters
and things as may be ne^sary for making and main-
taining the canal, reservoir, and other works.

Apian and book of reference of the line of the
canal shall be left with the clerk of the peace for
Staffordshire, and another with the clerk of the
company, which line shall not be deviated from with-
out the land-owners* consent ; and the company may
borrow at interest 10,000/. and assign over the canal
and rates as a security for the same. And this shall
be deemed a public act.

N. B. The breadth of the canal, and clauses se-
curing private property, with permission to erect con-
veniences fot carrying on the trade on this canal, are
inserted in those acts that are before recited, to which
those concerned may refer, and need no repeating ;
and the usual navigation clauses are but few for the
iibove reason. They only mention their care to pre-
serve the mills and water in the rivers Churnet, Dove^
andTr<,6t. ,. # *

40!i INLAND NAVIGATION.

Leicester CanaLj to amend* 17Q7*
The preamble recites act 31 Geo. III., cap. 05,
■ whereby certain persons and their successors, in-
corporated by the style of the Company of Proprie-
tors of the Leicester Navigation, were authorised to .
make a navigable canal between the Loughborough
canal and the town of Leicester, by making certain
cuts, and by rendering the rivers Soar and Wrcakc
navigable, and also several rail-ways or stone roads
and water levels, in order to make a communi-
cation between certain places and mines in the
county of Leicester, and the Loughborough canal,
and" to raise 46,000/. towards defraying the ex-
penses thereof, and if that should be found insuf- ,
ficient, to raise 20,000/. more ; and as the company
have nearly completed the navigation, in which they
have already not only expended the said two sums,
but have contracted nearly 14,000/. debt, and some
parts of the works' are still incomplete : It is there-
fore enacted, That the company may contribute
among themselves, or by mortgage, in the manner
expressed in the recited act, l'8,000/. to be applied
in defraying the expenses of obtaining this act, and
of completing the works aforesaid, and in discharg-
ing the company's debts, and the several provisions
contained in the recited act shall extend to this act,
and the proprietors in respect of the 1 8,000 /. shall
be entitled to a proportionable part of the profits
that shall arise by virtue of the recited and this act.
And this shall be deemed a public act.

N. B. This canal " interfering with the Meltoa
]Mowbray, the Oakham, and other canals, the clauses
to secure the several proprietors, as also private pro-
perty, are numerous and complex, for all which those
concerned may be informed by pejusing the former

. INLi^KD NAVIGATION. 403

recited and this act, but to the generality of readers
it would appear tautology and uninteresting. The
usual clauses in all navigation acts are also here in-
serted.

Glocestbr and Bkrkelv Canal, to vary. 1797*

•

The preamble states, that by 33 Geo. III. cap.
97 > ^^^ making and maintaining a navigable canal
from the river Severn at or near the city of Glocestcr,
into a place called Berkely Hll, in the parish of
Berkely, and also a cut to or near the town of Berke-*
Jy, in the county of Glocester, certain persons
were incorporated by the name of the Glocester and
Berkely Canal Company, with powers to make a
navigable canal from the river Severn near Glocester
to Berkely Pill, in such line as is described in a map
and book of reference deposited with the clerk of
Glocestershire, and that by a deviation from the said
line, the deep cutting in the several parishes of Slim-
bridge, Frampton-upon-Severn, Fretherne, Saul,
Wheatenhurst, Moreton Valence, and Standish,
might be avoided ; advantages would accrue to the
land owners, the line of the canal would be shorts
ened, the navigation improved, a great expense
would be saved, and the completion of the canal
would be expedited : It is therefore enacted, that so
much of the recited act as restrains the company
from deviating from the line of the canal, without
the consent in writing of the persons through whose
lands such deviation should be made, shall, so far
only as relates to the lands within the parishes of Stoiu"-
bridge, Frampton-upon-Severn, Fretherne, Saul,
Wheatenhurst, Moreton Valence, and Standish, in
Glocestershire be repealed, and the company may

D D 2

404 ATLANB KAVlGAtroy.

make the canal through those parishes in such line
as is described in a map and book of reference depo-
sited with the clerk of the peace for the county of
Glocester, but not to alter this deviation.

The like tonnage and wharfage as would have
been paid to the company by virtue of the recited
act^ if the line of the canal had not been varied^
shall be paid on the deviated line.

And as by the recited act the company was autho-'
rised to raise among themselves a sum not exceeding
140,000/. to be divided into 1400 shares of lOO/.
each, and in case that sum should be found insuf^
ficient they might raise 6o,000/. more, either among
themselves or the admission of new members, or on
mortgage, and the company hare hitherto been un<^
able to raise the whole of the 140,000/. ; and as
doubts have arisen whether the company are authorised
by the recited act to raise the further sum of 6o,000/. ,
until 140,000/. shall have been actually advanced ; it
is enacted, that when the sum of 100,000/. shall h$ye
been paid on calls made under the recited act, or of this
act, the company may raise the remainder of the
140,000/. as also the 6k>,000/. either by admission ftf
new subscribers for shares of lOO/. half-shares of 50/.
or quarter-shares of 25/. or by mortgage or bond ; but
for so many of such parts as make together one
whole share one vote only shall be admitted, and no
person shall hold more than 50 shares. And as the
Glocester and Berkely Canal, by means of the in-
tended deviation, will intersect the Stroudwat^r navi-
gation at a point on its lowest level, and it is expe-
dient that such level should be raised and varied to a
place more, to the west, for the crossing of both navi-
gations, and below the intended junction in the re-
cited act: It is enacted, that the Glocester and

Berkdy ^dtaX compaay may kagtben and continue
. the »()f(er reach or level of the Stroudw^ter nsm^
tiQPi iMid faiae 4ik1 vary so much of the lowest reach
or leTcl a$ may be answerable thereto for any exjtent
tK>t exc^ing 1'200 yards; such extent to be com*
puted fh>m the upper par|t of the Head of the Whit^
mimter lock downwaads upoa the navigatkni to^
wardii the west ; and tfr perforin all works necessary
thereto : and for these piarposes they may change
the eaurse of the Siroiidwater navigation within the
liniils aforesaid, agreeable to the plan of the intended
deviation aforesaid ; and they may raise all such
mounds and embankments as shaU h^ necessary, and
keep the same in proper repair. And this shall be
taken and deemed a pdsflic aot.

N. B. The many clauses and restrictions ag^unst
entering or injuring ptivate property, jptovt the care
that parliament takes in protecting as well as pro-
moting all useful undertaltings, aiul that no injury
shdll be snetained by individuals, even ai the .expense
of public utility ; the dauses aS in other navigation
aets^ as usual*

Tabnt akd Mersbt Canal, to extenh. 1797»

The prelOBhle staces, that by 6 Geo. III. cap. 9(5»

for making a navigable canal idm the river Trent,
at or near Wilsden Ferry, in the county of Derby,
to the river Mersey at or liear Runcorn Gap, certain
person^ were incorponttod by the name of The Com*
pany of Proprietors of the Navigation ftom the Trent
to the Mersey, with authority to make and maintain
a navigable canal from the fiver Trent below' Wils*
den Ferry, in Derbyshire, to the river Mefsey at or
near Runcorn (rap, and several commissioners were
appointed by the act to carry it into execution j and

40d INLAND HAVIGATION.

that the company, in pursuance of that act, and ano*
ther passed in the 10th of his present Majesty to
amend it, and another passed in the 1 5th of his Ma-
jesty to amend and render more effectual the two
acts, have made and completed the said canal ; and
by virtue of another act passed in the l6th of his
Majesty, have completed another navigable canal
from the first-mentioned canal on the south side of
Harecastle, to Froghall, and a rail-way from thence
to or oiear Caldon, in Sbffordshire ; and by another
act passed in the 23rd of his Majesty, the two canals
were united and made one joint undertaking ; and
as by surveys lately made, it appears that a navigable
canal may be made out of the last-mentioned canal,
which is now called the Caldon .Canal, at Froghall,
to or near the town of Uttoxeter, which will open
an easy conveyance for coals, lime, and other articles,
between the two first-mentioned canals and the said
town and neighbourhood; and that another canal
may be made from out of the said Caldon canal at
Shelton, to or near Colmdge, and another navigable
canal out of the Trent and Mersey canal at Long-
port, to a place called Dale Hall, in Burslem in the
said county, which last- mentioned canals ..will faci-
litate the conveyance of goods and merchandise be-
tween the canals of the company and the manufac-
tories of earthen-ware in those neighbourhoods, and
will be of public utility : It is therefore enacted, that
the company may make and maintain a canal out of
the Caldon canal at Froghall, to or near the town of
Uttoxeter ; and another canal out of the said canal
at Shelton, to or near Cobridge ; and another canal
out of the Trent and Mersey canal at Longport, to
Dale Hall in Burslem, with all necessary towing-
path3, wharfs, and other conveniences, and do 2^1

INLAND NAVIGATION. 407

things necessary for making, using, and maintaining
the canals and works. Plans and books of reference
are left with the clerk of the peace for the county of
Stafford, and the clerk of the company ; and the
course of the canals shall not deviate therefrom with-
out the consent of the land-owners. No water to
be taken for the use of these canals from the rivers
Churnet or Dove, or out of any brook or rivulet
which now falls into them. And this shall be allowed
a public act.

N. B. The company being proprietors of the
canals adjoining, few private clauses were wanted to
secure private property, but what was wanted has
been attended to. The usual navigation clauses are
few, although there are three new branches of canals
to make, and as no mention is made to raise money,
it is to be presumed it is already in hand. The ton-
nage and wharfage of goods are very reasonable..

Kennet and Avon Canal, to extend and

AMEND. 179'8.

The preamble states, that an act passed in 34
Geo. III. for making a navigable canal from the river
Kennet, ^t or near Newbury, to the river Avon, at
or near the city of Bath, and also certain navigable
cuts therein described, and certain persons were in-
corporated by the name of The Company of Pro-
prietors of the Kennet and Avon Canal Navigation ;
and another act was passed in the 36 Geo. III. to
vary and alter the line of the canal authorised to be
jmade by the forq[ier act : and the company find-
ing other variations necessary, it is enacted, that im-
mediately after passing this act, the company may
vary and alter the line of the said Kennet and Avon

408 INLAND NAVIGATION.

canaly from out of a piece of land in the parish of
Bishop Cannings^ in Wiltshire, to and near the west
gate of Devises^ and in a more direct line out of the
canal near to Bath Hampto«i to the city of Batb^
through the parishes of Bath Hampton^ Bathwick^
and Lyncombe, and Widcombe, in the county of
Somerset, into the nver Avon, at or near Dole Mead,
and also to make a basin adjoining the said canal in
the parish of Lyncombe and Widcombe.

Levels and surveys have been taken^ and plaiu^
with a book of reference, are deposited with the clerk
of the peace for Wiltshire, and with the clerk of
the company, and no variarion or alteration shall de-
viate more than 100 yards from the plan and book
of reference. And the company are authorised to
make, erect, build, and execute all works, matters^
and things, as shall be requisite and convenient,
such as bridges, reservoirs, feeders, shafts, locks^
tunnels, aqueducts, wharfs, quays, landing-places,
weigh-beams, cranes, engines, machines, and all
other things that may be found necessary for the use
of the said canal navigation. And this b deemed a
public act.

N. B. There are several clauses to secure private
property in' this short bill of variation, (which is cer-*
tainly much better for the canal than the former line)
especially protecting the springs at Sydney's Gardens,
gt Bathwick, as also empowering the company to
purchase shares of the Kennet and Avon canal, be*
tween Bath and Hannaur Mills, of certain discon-
tented persons ; the usual clauses in all navigation
acts are also inserted.

Newcastle- under-Lynb Junction Canal.

1798.

The preamble sets fortb, that the making and
maintaining of a can^l^ or canal and inclined plane
or rail-way, for the passage o( boats and other vessels^
and waggons and other carriages froin and out of the
Newcastle-under-Lync canal, to the canal of Sir
Nigel Bowyer Gresley, bart. and also another branch
of catial or inclined plane or rail- way out of the last«,
mentioned canal c^t or near Apedale, to the coal and
other works of Sir John Edensor Heathcote, knight>
and Thomas Kinnersly. esq. at Partridge Nest, and
John Wedgwood, gent, at Bignal End, in the county
of Stafford, will be of great public utility, by open-
ing an easy communication with several valuable
mines and iron-works, and^by furnishing, at an easy
expense, the neighbourhood with coals, lime, and
other articles : It is enacted, that (here follow the
names of the company of proprietors) their heirs and
successors, are- united into a company and body cor-
porate, by the style of The Newcastle-under-Lync
Junction Canal Company, who are hereby authorised
to make^ complete, or to alter a communication, by
canal, or canal and inclined plane or rail- way, from
out of th^ said Newcastle-under-Lyne canal, to the
canal of Sir Nigel Bowyer Gresley, bart. near the
town of Newcastle-under-rLyne, Staffordshire, and a
branch of canal or inclined plane or rail- way out of
the last-mentioned canal near Apedale as aforesaid,
to the coal and other works at Partridge Nest and
Bignal End aforesaid, and to supply the canal with
water from all such brooks, springs, streams, rivulets,
watersj and water courses as shall be found in dig-

410 INLAND KAriGATIO)^.

ging or making the canal^ or within 1,000 yards of
the same, and to erect fire-engines or other machines
for supplying the said canal with water, and for the
use of the inclined plane or rail- way ; and also may
make soughs, tunnels, feeders, aqueducts, and chan-
nels, bridges, piers, arches, sluices, locks, flood-gates,
weirs, dams, wharfs, quays, warehouses, toll-houses^
landing-places, weighing-beams, cranes, dry docks^
wet docks, pens for water, towing-paths, banks, ways,
roads, and conveniences, where the company shall
think proper and convenient, for carrying and con-
veying on the said canals stones, coals, minerals,
goods, wares, merchandise, and other articles, not
injuring the canal of Sir Nigel Bowyer Gresley, bart.
A plan and book of referenpe are deposited with the
town clerk of Newcastle-under-Lyne, and another
with the clerk of the company, which shall not be
deviated from without the consent of the land-owners;
and the breadth of the canal, with the towing-paths,
banks, drains, ditches, and fences, shall not exceed 26
yards, except where there are docks, basins, or pens
of water, or where the canal shall be raised higher
or cut more than five feet below the present surface
of land, or where boats, barges, or other vessels turn,
lie, or pass each other, or where wharfs, cranes,
warehouses, or weighing- beams may be erected for the
reception or delivery of coals, lime, lime- stone, tim*
ber, minerals, goods, wares, and merchandise, and
not above 60 yards in breadth at any place without
the consent of the land-owner.

The company are empowered to raise among them-
selves any sum of money to make and complete the
said canal, inclined planes, or rail-ways, not exceeding
8,000/. to be divided into 160 shares, of 50 /. each.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 411

and shall be deemed personal estate ; every share to
have one vote, but no person to have above 14 votes
by personal attendance or proxy ; and in case the
said sum of 8,000 /. should be insufficient, the com-
pany may raise 4,000 /. more, either by themselves
or by admitting' new subscribers, or on mortgage,
but no mortgagee to have a vote on account of his
mortgage.

Owners or occupiers of lands adjoining the canal
may use pleasure boats, but not to pass through any
lock unless they pay equal to a boat of six tons, nor
to be used or carry any goods whatever, nor persons
foi: hire, nor to any market, nor to obstruct the na*
vigation. And this to be deemed a public act.

N. B. Although this is but a short navigable canal,
the clauses securing private property, and what arc
usual in all navigation acts, amount to 90, many
of which appear useless, except for lengthening
the blil.

Neath Canal Navigation, to AMfcNu. 3 798.

The preamble states and recites an act of Si Geo.
III. for making and maintaining a navigable canal
from or near Abernant, in Glamorganshire, to and
through the brick field near Halyn Cryrhan Pill,
into the river Ne^th, near the town, of Neath in the
same county ; several persons therein named were
united and made one body politic and corporate, by
the name of The Company of Proprietors of the ^
Neath Canal Navigation, and were authorised to,
make the said canal and the several works relating
thereto, and to raise 35,000/. to defray the expenses
thereof, and the proprietors have nearly completed
the same to the extent of the said recited act ; and

412 INLAND NATIGATION*

whereas, by surveys lately made, it appears that the
sud canal may be extended near the town of Neath
into the river Neath, at a place called Giants Grave
Pill, in the parish of Briton Ferry in the said county,
and that such extension of canal will render it more
convenient and useful, and \)t of public utility;
and the said cbmpany are wilhng and desirous at
their own expense to make, complete, and maintsun
the said extension, but cannot without the authority
of parliament : Therefore be it enacted, that from
the passing of this act it shall be lawful for the said
company of proprietors to cause the said extension
of the said navigation to be carried on and com^
pie ted, and to defray the expenses already incurred,
and which shall be incurred on account thereof, out
of the money to arise by virtue of the said recited
act ; and which extension shall be considered and
taken as part of the said canal ; and the company
may make and maintain any roads, rail-ways, wag*
gon ways, inclined planes, bridges, or cuts ta com-
municate therewith, and for making and erecting
towing-paths, wharfs, warehouses, and all other works
tvhicli may be useful and necessary.

And the company may, with the consent of the
land-owners and occupiers, cut through and make a
navigable canal, with towing-paths, rail-ways, and
w2^gon-ways thereto, from the said canal, to any
place within the distance of four miles from any part
of the canal ; and such cut or cuts when made and
completed, shall be deemed and taken as parts of the
said canal, for and in respect of paying the rates
thereon, and for every other use and purpose of the
said recited act and this act.

And the charge of warehoxise-room for any goods^
wares^ or merchandise, in any warehouse erected by
the said company, shall always be regulated by the
charges made for warehouse-room of the like goods,
wares, and merchandise at the warehouses of the
StaiFordshire and Worcester canal^ at jkourport, in
the couxiity of Worcester. And this shall be taken
and deemed a public act.

N. B. Iliere are as usual several clauses to secure
private property, and the usual ones in all navigation
acts ; and the produce of the vicinity of tfie canal
being coal, culm, iron«Mone, iron-one, lead-ore, and
timber, all heavy atticles which would have lain use*
less in the boweh of the earth if not brought forward
by so easy and cheap a carriage as canal navigation,
we may venture safely to pronounce it a profitable
asid useful undertaking.

WoBCBSXBR AKH BlUIII^OHAM CaNAX.> TO AM£RO.

1798.'

The preambte states, that an act was ^ssed in the '
31 Greo. Ill, cap. 59, for making and maintaining
H navigable canal from or near the town of Bir-
mingham, ih. Warwickshire, to communicate with
tile rir* Severn near to the city of Worcester,
whereby several persons were united . and made a
body politic and corporate, by the name of The
Company of Proprietors of the Worcester and Bir*
mingham Canal Navigation, with powers to make
and maintain the same ; and they were authorised
to raise by contribution among themselves, or by
mortgage, two sums of 1 80,000 /. and 70,000 /• as
in the act is particularly mentioned, for defraying
the expenses of the said^undertaking ; and the com-

414 INLAND NATIGATION.

pany have made and completed a great part of the
said cajial, and have expended a very large sum of
money thereon, but find it will require a greater sum
than they are authorised to raise to enable them to
finish and complete the said canal : Be it enacted,
that the company of proprietors be authorised to raise
by subscription among themselves, or by the admis*
sion of new subscribers, or by mortgage or annuities,
the sum of 149,929/. Is. l-^d. more to be divided into
Q.,15Q half shares, at 69/. 8s. 10^. each, (if sub-
scribed for) which half shares shall be deemed per-
sonal estate, and be transmissible as such ; and thai
two such half shares shall have a vote» either per^
sonally or by proxy ; and a proprietor may hold any
number of shares or half shares he may think proper.
And this shall be taken and deemed a public act- ^

N. B. The clauses for securing private property
are as usual prfetty numerous, and the intersecting
and interfering with the Dudley canal, the Stratford,
^nd Avon canal, and the other canals, makes the
description of them very complex, and almost unin-
telligible, unless to those locally concerned, and the
difTerence of rates and tonnage out of one canal into
another, . and from that canal to another, perplexes
but not explains its true meaning ; but as such an
immense sum as 399,929/. Is. l-^tl. is raised to cut
a canal, we must suppose it to be of vast consequence
and utility, and a wonderful trade must be carried
on to pay the interest : but the wonder will cease
when it is considered for a moment that it is in tke
centre of the kingdom, and the centre of all our ma-
niifactures, and communicates with the four great
sea ports London, Bristol, Liverpool, and Hull. The
usual navigation clauses are also inserted.

tXLAND KAYIGATIOX* ^15

Manchester and Oldham Canal, to amende

1798.
The preamble states, that an act passed in the 32
Geo. IIL for making a navigable canal from Man-
chester to or near Ashton-undcr-Lyne, and Oldham
in Lancashire ; certain persons and their successor^
were incorporated by the name of The Company of
Proprietors of the Canal Navigation from Manchester
to Ashton-under-Lyne and Oldham ; they were au-
thorised to /make, complete, and maintain a canal
navigation from the town of Manchester, to or near
Fairfield, and from thence one branch through part
of the said parish and the parish of Ashton-under-
Lyne, to a public highway in the town of Ashton-
under- Lyne, to a bridge called Dukinfield bridge ;
and by another branch from Fairfield, to a place
called New Mill, near the town of Oldham, and
also to make an aqueduct bridge over the river Tame,
at or near Walk Mill, near the town of Ashton-under-
Lyne aforesaid, into Dukinfield, from and to com-*
municate with the said canal ; and another aqueduct
bridge over the river Medlock, to a place called
Boodle Wood ; and to raise for the same 6o,000 /.
and if that is insufficient they may raise 30,000 /.
more. And whereas a recited act of 33 Geo. IIL
enables the company of Manchester to Ashton-
under-Lyne and Oldham canal to extend the same
to a place called Clayton Demesne, in the township
of Droylsden, in the parish of Manchester, to a place
in the turnpike road in Heaton Norris, between
Manchester and Stockport, at the Three Boars' Heads,
and from a place called Taylor's Barn, in the town-
ship of Reddish, to Denton, at a place called Beat

4l(5 IWLAWD KAVI0ATI05r.

Bank, adjoining thq turnpike road between Stockport
and Ashton-undcr-Lyne ; and also from the intended
aqueduct bridge at a place called Waterhouses, and
to a place called Stake Leach, at Hollingwood, in
the township of Oldham aforesaid ; the said com-
pany were authorised to make, complete, and main-
tain a canal, navigable and passable for boats, barges^
and other vessels, from Manchester, Ashton-under-
Lyne, and Oldham canal, at Clayton Demesne, in
Droylsden, to Heaton Norris, between Manchester
and Stockport, by the Three Boars' Heads as before
described ; and another canal to communicate with
the last mentioned from Taylor's Barn, in Reddish,
to Denton, at Beat Bank, between Stockport and
Ashton-undcr-Lyne ; and also another canal to com-
municate with the aqueduct bridge at Waterhouses,
to Stake Leach, at HoUingwood, in Oldham afore-
said ; and to raise any money to defray the expenses
thereof, not exceeding 30,000 /. And the company
have proceeded in making and completing parrs of
tlie said canals and works, and have not only expended
the said money so raised^ but are considerably in
debt, and it is therefore absolutely necessary they
should be authorised to raise a further sum of money,
the powers of the recited act being defective and
require amendment: Be it therefore enacted, that
the company be authorised to raise any sum not
exceeding in the whole 30,000 /. over and above the
sums of 60,600 /• 30,000/. and 30,000^ in the said
acts authorised to l3e raised as therein mentioned,
either by mortgage, bonds, or promissory notes,
payable in ifive years, which notes may be made
stock of at the op|bn of the note-holders, and

then become joint J^i^prietors in the whole canal

♦ • ■

* _;■

INLAND NAVIGATION. 417

navigation, all its braoches and extensions, and vote
and receive the profits accordingly as an original
proprietor. This to be taken and deemed a public
act.

N. B. The clauses to secure th^ private property
wherq it clashes and interferes with these several canals
and their branches* are rather numerous, but not more
than were absolutely necessary ; the clauses, as usual
in all navigation acts, are nearly the same, and the
vast sums of money raised to carry them into execu-
tion and completion proves their utiHty and prospe-
rous situation. The country all around abounds
with manufactures and manufacturers, who like
swarms of bees are continually employed by the
merchants, who, with a ready conveyance to, the four
great sea-ports, diffuse these productions over the
whole globe.

Stainwo^th and'Keadly Canal, to amend.

1796.

The preamble states, that by an act of 33 Geo.
III. cap. 117, for making and maintaining a naviga-
ble canal from the river Dunn, at or near Stainforth,
Yorkshire, to join the river Trent at Keadly, in
Lincolnshire, and a collateral cut from the said canal
to join the river Dunn, in the parish of Thorne, in
the West-Riding of Yorkshire; certain persons there-
in named and their successors were incorporated by
the name of the Company of Proprietors of the
Stainforth and Keadly Canal Navigation, with powers
to make a canal navigable for boats, barges, and
other vessels, from the river Dunn navigation, cut
near Stainforth to Keadly aforesaiA^ there to join with
the river Trent in the line of jlicection marked out

Eb - \

418 INLAND KAVIGATION.

in a plan and book of reference deposited with the
clerk of the peace for the division of Lindsey, Wcst-
Kiding, Yorkshire, and also to make a collateral cut
from the said canal on Thornc Common to Hang-
man's Hill, there to join the river Dunn. The said
company by the recited act were empowered to raise
91,200/. for to make the said canal and collateral
cut; and if the said sum should be found insufficient
they were empowered to raise 12,100/. more, cither
among themselves or by mortgage ; and great pro-
gress hath been already made by the company in the
execution of the said act, and they have already
nearly expended the 24,200/. and have occasion for
a larger sum than they have by the recited act a
power to raise, for completing and finishing the
works of the undertaking : be it enacted, that from
and after the passing of this act, and the part of
the recited act as enables the company to raise
12,100A that instead thereof they may be author
rised to raise 20,000/. and the money to be raised
is to be laid out .and applied to making, com-
pleting, and maintaining the said canal, collateral
cut, side drains, banks, and other necessary works of
the undertaking, according to the directions of the
said recited act.

And if the said 20,000/. should be. found insuf-r
ficicnt, the company may raise 10,0Ci0/. more by
mortgage, or otherwise, and the subscribers and
proprietors are empowered to hold any number of
shares, and to vote by himself, or herself, or by
proxy, for every share. Ai^d this is deemed a
public act.

N. B. The clauses to secure private property arc
j:)ijt fevv, they being before taken care of in the

INLAND NAVIGATION. 419

recited act, and the other clauses are as usual in all
navigation acts.

Grand Junction Canal, new articles. 1798;
This scarcely deserves mentioning, being only arti-
cles of agreement to explain the last act, that the
company of the Grand Junction canal are empowered
to purchase, if wanted, of the Bishop of London,
Sir John Frederick, Sir John Morshead, Thomas
Wood, Arthur Stanhope, and Robert Thistlewaite,
esq. lands, for the use of the canal and conveni-
ences necessary thereto.

Oxford Canal, to amend. 1799*
The preamble states, that several acts passed in the
9th, 15th, 26th, and 34th years of Geo. III. for
making a navigable canal from the Coventry canal
navigation to the city of Oxford ; certain persons
therein named and their successors were incorporated
by the name of the Company of Proprietors of the
Oxford Canal Navigation, and have long since made
and completed the said canal near to a certain place
within the city of Oxford called Badcock^s Garden,
where it is proposed the said canal shall terminate ;
and in order to prevent any doubts or disputes that
may arise respecting the authority of the said com-
pany of proprietors under the said acts, to carry
the said canal beyond the north boundary of the
said city, and it having been found that the said
acts are in respects defective, and further powers
being wanted to enable the said company of propri-
etors more effectually to support and maintain the
said navigation ; be it enacted, that from and after
the passing of this act^ the termination of the said

BE 2

420 INLAND NAVIGATIOK.

canal shall be deemed and taken to be at the said
place called Badcock^s Garden ; and the powers and
authorities of the said company shall extend to such
part of the said canal as lies between the north boun-
dary of the said city and Badcock*s Garden, as fully
and effectually, to all intents and purposes, as if the
said termination had been particularly mentioned and
described in the said recited acts, or any of them.
And that all locks, quays, and other works, the
dwelling-house and close in the occupation of James
Dunsford, gent, clerk to the said company, and all
houses, wharfs, warehouses, and other buildings
which have been erected or purchased for the said
company, or shall hereafter be erected or purchased
for the said company, upon such part of the said
canal or near adjoining thereto, shall be deemed and
taken to belong to the said canal navigation, and
be considered as a part thereof.

And it is also further enacted, that from hence-
forth lOo/. stock in the said canal shall be deemed
and taken as one share, and have one vote per-
sonally or by proxy, but no person to vote for more
than 20 shares. And this shall be tak^n and deemed
a public act.

Stratpord-upon-Avon Canal, to ambnd. 1799-
The preamble to the bill states, that an act passed
33 Geo. III. whereby certain persons were united
and made one body politic and corporate, by the
name and style of the Company of Proprietors of
the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal Navigation, for mak-
ing the same, and collateral cuts, and the several
other works necessary for carrying the said act into
execution; and the said company are directed to

.INLAND NAVIGATION. 421

make the said canal in such a line as is described and
set forth in a plan and book of reference deposited
with th^ clerks of Worcester and Warwick counties ;
and by another act of 35 Geo. III. the said com^
pany are authorised to make a navigable cut from
out of the Stratford-upon-Avon canal, in the parish
of Lapworth, into the Warwick and Birmingham
canal, in the manor of Kingswood in Warwickshire,
in such line as is set forth in a book of reference
deposited as aforesaid ; and the said company was
authorised to raise by themselves, or on mortgage,
certain sums of money therein mentioned for defray-
ing the expenses of the said undertaking. ^

And the said company have made and completed
a very considerable part of th^ said canal, but find
it will require a greater sum of money than they are
authorised to raise to enable them to finish the same,
aind to make and complete the collateral cuts, and
also the cut into the Warwick and Birminghani
canal and other works corresponding thereto, and it
is necessary that some amendments should be made
to the said acts ; and upon a re-survey of the country
through which the company are empowered to make
some parts of the canal as yet unfinished, and also
to make the cut into the Warwick and Birmingham
canal, that it will be more convenient for the navi-
gation and the public to vary the lines as hereafter
mentioned, and also that it will be a further advan-
tage to the public if the company are empowered to
make a branch from out of the said canal, in the
parish of Ashton Cantloe, as hereinafter mentioned :
Therefore be it enacted, That from and after the
passing of this act, it shall be lawful for the said
company to vary and deviate from the lines described

422 INLAND NAVIGATION.

in the plans and books of reference as aforementioned^*
Within the several parishes of Lapworth, Kings^
wood, Rowington, Claverdon, Preston Bagot Bearly,
and Ashton Cantloe in Warwickshire, and instead of
making the said canal and the cuts in the said parishes
according to the plans and books of reference before
'mentioned ; but according to what is hereafter men-
tioned ; and also to make a navigable branch out of
the said canal from a close of land in the parish of
Ashton Cantloe, in Waswickshire^ to the Birming-
ham and Stratford turnpike road, according to the
plan and book of reference ; but the company may
make* variations between the intended cut into the
Warwick and Birmingham canal and lands in the
parish of Lapworth, to deviate not more than 100
yards from the said direction on the side thereof to-
wards and in the parish of Rowington.

The company of proprietors are, by this amended
act, authorised to raise among themselves, or by
admission of new subscribers, or by bonds, mortgage,
or annuities, 45,000/. (including 10,000/. authorised
-to be raised by the act 35 Geo. III.) to complete the
said canal, cut, and branch, and other works autho-
rised to be made by the said recited act. And thia
shall be taken and deemed a public act. * •

N. B. There is great care taken in this act to se-
cure private property, and what with the cut and
branch, with the junction into the Warwick and
Birmingham canal, it is so complicated. as hardly to
be expressed intelligibly ; there appear so many plans,
maps,. and books of reference which are not to .be
deviated from, to amuee the people for the moment.
But when solicitor, surveyor, or engineer wants a
job, the farce begins again, and a re-survey is made

. '

INLAKD KAVIGATIOSr. 423

with a few interested proprietors and solicitors' assist-
ance, to increase tautology, and enlarge the expence of
another application to parliament. The engineer and ^
surveyor now must draw fresh plans and maps, with
books of reference, not to be deviated from, till
something else occurs to repeat it again, without
deviation or variation ;' and then, to cover all blunders,
^* Errors in describing the line in the map or plan
not to prevent the making the canal."

" What ! after six plans and six books of reference^
and three applications to parliament for money in
addition, and 35,000/. to complete what the first
estimate should have completed !— -It was not so with
my old master Brindley."

A company of gentlemen, by the allurement held
out to them by an estimate to become joint propri-
etors in cutting a canal, in expectation of making
8 or 10 per cent, of their money, are often glad to
sit down with 1\ or 3 per cent, and after an extra
expense of tonnage on their goods.

Tunnel under the Thames prom Gravesend to

Tilbury. 1799.

Although I deviate in this one instance from my
original plan in mentioning canals only, yet I hope
the novelty, of this scheme will excuse me to the
reader to mention it in as concise a manner as possi-
ble, it being a very long act, containing 65 clauses.

The preamble states, that the making of a
tunnel or road under the river Thames, of a proper
breadth for the passage of cattle and carriages,
from near Gravesend in Kent,, to near Tilbury
Fort in Essex, would be of the greatest advan-.
ig^e to those counties, and would also be of great

424 INLAND NAVIGATIQiy*

national advantage as a military road or pass ; but
the same cannot be effected without the authority
of parliament : Be it therefore enacted, That (here
follow the names of the company of proprietors)
shall for that purpose be one body politic and cor-
porate, by the name and style of the Company of
Proprietors of the Tunnel under the river Thames.

That it shall be lawful for the said company to
raise and contribute among themselves 30,000/. for
making and maintaining the said tunnel ; and all the
aqueducts, ways, road, engines, and all other works
and\:onveniences belonging or requisite thereto, and
the same to be divided into shares of lOOL each,
and to be deemed personal estate, and every person
having a share to vote personally or by proxy, but
not exceeding ten votes in the whole to one person ;
and if the above sum is insufficient they may raise
a further sum of 20,000/. cither by themselves or by
new subscribers jof lOO/. each share, who shall have
the same vote personally or by proxy as the original
subscribers, and if not raised in that manner, it may
be raised by mortgage.

And the company are authorised to make and
maintain a tunnel or road under the river Thames,
from any point between 100 yards west of a house
occupied by Jeremiah Howard, in the parish of
Northfleet, and one quarter of a mile eastward of
the New Tavern Bridge, in the parish of MiltOii
next Graviesend, in the county of Kent, and between
the opposite points on the shore in the county of
Essex ; and the said company may bore, dig, cut,
trench, sough, get, remove, take, and carry away,
lay,- make use of, dispose of, and sell, for their own
use and benetir, any earth, clay, chalk, stone, ^oik

INLAND NAVIQATION. 425

rabbish, trees, roots of trees, gravel, sand, or any
pther matters or things which may be dug or got in
making the said intended tunnel, or other works
thereto requisite to be done ; and may also build
and erect so many tunnels, aqueducts, water stanks,
dams, drains, quays, houses, warehouses, toll-houses^
watch-houses, landing places, weighing beams, cranes,
fire-engines, or other machines, and other works^
ways, roads, and conveniences as and where the
said company shall think requisite and convenient.

And the said company may ask, demand, take,
f nd recover for their own use the tolls following :
that is to say —

s. D.

For every wheel on every coach, chariot,
landau, berlin, chaise, calash, curricle, or

chair 2 6

For every wheel on every waggon, wain,

or cart T 1 o

For every horse, mare, gelding, or mule. . l o

For every ass ...'.... 3

For every drove of oxen, cows, or neat

cattle, per score 15

For every drove of calves, swine, sheep,

or lambs, per score 3 4

For every drove of geese and turkies, per

score. . . ; O 2 J

For every foot pessenger 2

No toll to be taken for any beast that draws a

wheel carriage, or for one persoQ attending a cart or

two with a waggon^

No toll to be demanded or taken of any officer or

soldier upon march, or upon duty, or for any horse be>
ponging to any officer or soldier upon march or (lury,or

426 INLAND NAVZ^GATZOK^

for any horse, cattle, or carriage conveying arms or bag-^
gage, or sick, wounded, or disabled officer or soldier^
or in conveying cannon, ordnance, or military stores^
or any horse, mare, or gelding fiarnished by or for
any person in any corps or troop of volunteer cavalry^
rode by them in uniform, going or returning from
exercise ; and in consideration of such exemptions^
the lords commissioners of the treasury shall pay
yearly and each year the clear sum of lOOO/. in four
equal quarterly payments ; and if the said sum of
lOOO/. is not paid as aforesaid, the; company are
empowered to take the usual tolls of men^ horses^
carriages, &c. &c.

The tunnel to be lighted with as many lampa
as the company of- proprietors may think proper,
and if wilfully broke or damaged 2CXf. penalty or
one month to hard labour in the comnK>h gaol of
house of correction. No passage through the tun-
nel at any other time than between the hours of 7
in the morning and 5 in the evening in Novem-
ber, December, January, and February ; between
5 in the morning and 8 in the evening during the
months of March, April, September, and October;
and between 4 in the morning and Q in the evening
in May, June, July, and August, in evety year. And
his Majesty, in right of his crown, having a right to
the accustomed ferry over the river Thames, the
company are required to pay unto his Majesty, his
heirs, and successors, a rent of 80/. yearly, and
every year, by two equal half )fear]y payments,
as a recompense and satisfaction for the said ferry,
houses, and buildings thereto belonging; and the cor-
poration of Gravesend and Milton are in right of their
estates, entitled to ascertain and accustomed ferry

aisAHn NAVIGATION* 427

over the said river Thames, now let at 30/. a ycar^
and the profits and emoluments thereof will be con-»
siderably diminished, if not wholly taken away, by
making the s£ud tunnel near to the said fprry ; the
company therefore agrees to p^y to the said corpo-
lation of Gravesend and Milton a Uke rent of 30/.
a year, and every year, by two half yearly payments,
as a full recompense and satisfaction for the said
ferry, or the said company may contract and make
an absolute purchase of the said ferry, reckoning
the value thei^bf at 30/. a year ; and all acts or
offences done within the tunnel or any part thereof
shall be deemed to be done in either of the counries
of Essex or Kent, and all actions may be brought,
laid, tried, and prosecuted in either county of Essex
or Kent. And this shall be taken and deemed a
public act.

N. B. I must beg leave to animadvert a little, and
make a few remarks on this novel piece of business,
and consider its expense and utility.

Mr. R, Dodd the prbjector, and who calls him-
self a civil engineer, confesses he took the first hint
of this scheme by observing the souterrain or tunnel
intended to; be performed between North and South
Shields near the mouth of the river Tyne, which
will save a circuit of 20 miles, and formed the idea
of a like accommodation between Kent and Esse^ at
Gravesend to Tilbury on the Essex shore, which
will save a circuit of 50 miles in going round over
London bridge. This was supposed to be prac-
ticable, froiQ a supposition that a bed or rock^
of chalk was supposed to pass under the whole
bed of the river into the Essex marshes; but
I think Mr. D. will be greatly mistaken, for

42& INLAND NAVIGATIOir.

several reasons, which shall be hereafter mentionec} ;
and, if he had acted as caution should have die-*
tated^ he would have made himself well acquainted
and complete master of alt expected difficulties, a»
well as of the favourable circumstances.

The foundation of Tilbury fort when erected, was
about 48 feet below the then surface, and all soft
cJay ooze, and there appeared flags, rushes, sedges,,
leaves, branches of trees, holly trees, &c. &c. all
laid flat, which proved it to have been occasioned
by a sudden inundation ; below this was^ a quicksand^
which appeared to have been the original shore of
the river. Then they bored 30 feet deeper, making
it 78 feet, in order to find fresh water to accommo-
date the garrison by two wells ; at this last extre-
mity they found a fine stiff marl. The first ques-
tion is, what depth from this marl or clay must the
tunnel be made ; this being 78 feet, and the depth
of the river at spring tides 66 feet ? The marl or
clay continued only 2 feet deeper, and then appeared
a layer of chalk. This is now 80 feet from the sur-
face of the parade, and consequently above the same
depth firom high water mark. How deep this chalk
layer runs I know not ; but I should suppose that it
runs as all chalk qua?ries or pits do : namely, a layer
of about a foot of flmt stones, called a belt, at about
every four feet of chalk, and so on alternately, a^
layer of chalk of 4 feet, and a belt of flints. of I foot
or 15 inches, as may be seen in the pits at Norrb-
fleet, and any where else in the county where chalk
pits are.

My readers I beg and hope will suffer me, here
to digress a little more, and to apprise Mr. D. of
difficulties to be surmounted, and natural obstacle^

INLAND NAVIGATION. 42$

arising that will require all his ingenuity and acute-
ness to encounter. We now call this 80 feet from
the surface of high water mark ; the top of the
arch" of the tunnel cannot be less than 30 feet
below this; and if the tunnel be cylindrical it
will take 20 feet mpre to the bottom of the tunnel,
making it altogether J 30 feet deep from the top of
high water mark. I say and wilt prove that steam
engines (for there must be more than one, although
Mr. D. mentions one,ip wanted) placed to discharge
the water, not only from the work as carrying on, but
kept continually at work to draw off the water which
will weep, or rather copiously drain through the
open pores of the belts of flint, as well as through
the fissures and crevices of the challc, besides what
may be cut into and spring up, will also draw all
the wells dry in Gravesend, and greatly affect, if not
render entirely useless, the wells in the garrison at
Tilbury fort, will destroy the tunnel (if ever made)
^nd make the whole scheme abortive.

Now as I have supposed the tunnel's height to be
20 feet, to be completely useful it ought to be wide
enough for two loaded waggons to pass each other,
which cannot be less than l6 feet, and a foot-path
of 4 feet on one side at least, which will be 20 feet,
and will form a circle; but if a 4 feet foot-path on
pach side the better, and as the bottom must be
filled up with §tone and gravel, or paved, cannot be
less than 5 feet, which will leave only 15 feet from
the centre of the arch ; then if 4 kf^t more is al-
lowed to be squared from th« top of the arch, it will
leave only 1 1 feet, which is not high enough for a
tilted waggon^ or one loaded with hay or sheaves of
com.

430 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Mr. D. proposes l6 feet diameter in the clear, and
a road of four feet to be filled up near l6 feet wide,
and the space above 12 feet is a sufficient width for
foot, horse, and carriage passengers, (this I think
^common sense denies) and to be illuminated with
lamps^ and a steam engine to draw off the drainage
waters, if necessary, (he has no occasion to say ip
KECsssARY ! for he will find more than one or two
to be necessary.) Now follows his estimate:

900 yards of running measure of tunnel-
ling, digging, and vaulting, with key-stones,
(no size mentioned) at 12 /. per yard * . , .^ 10,800
Relaying the bottom with new-made

ground, 90O yards, at 1 /. per yard 900

Fixing lamps and irons through the
tunnel, toll collector's room, gates, &c. . . ' 400
Making good entrance-roads at each end ]6o
Steam-engine and pipes, if necessary 1,780
Necessary machinery during the exe-
cution . . ^ 5oa

Ten per cent, on the whole for con-
tingencies 1,455

• As the estimate is not 1 6,000 /. why raise 50,000 A
in the act granted by parliament, or why make any
estimate for less than one third of what it will cost ?

* I was at the digging and vaulting the first tunnd that ever
was performed in this country, invented by my old master Mr.
Brindley, through Harecastle, in StafFprdshire, in 1776, and which
cost only 3/. 10;. Sd, per yard, and that was thought a great sum
of money.

The tunnel at Sapperton, to join the Thames and the Sererot

iklakd navigatiost. 431

Thames and Mbdway Canal. 1600.

The preamble states, that the making and main-
taining a navigable canal for boats, barges, and other
vessels from the river Thames, near Gravesend, in
Kent, to the river Medwajr, at or near a place called
Nicholson's Ship Yard, in Frindsbury parish and
county aforesaid, and the making a collateral cut
from the said canal at a place called White Wall, in
the said parish of Frindsbury, to the river Medway,
nearly opposite his Majesty's dock yards at Chathani,
will greatly facilitate and render less expensive the
carriage and conveyance of coals, timber, stone,
corn, lime, and manure, as also of all goods, wares,
and other articles, and will considerably improve the
agriculture of the country, and will render unnes-
cessary a long and circuitous and sometimes dan-
gerous navigation on the open sea, and will otherwise
be of great public and private advantage ; but the
same cannot be effected without the authority of
parliament : Be it therefore enacted, by the authority

tfiroQgh two miles of solid rock, cost only about pight guineas
per yard. ; ^ .

Mr. D. bi«alat«8> or rather estimates, selling the chalk st
Sj. 6i/* per yard.cube^ and the flints at Ht. to 1.5j. but seems
xtgardless of the great drainage water that constantly and inevi-
tably drains through the pores of the belts of flints, and the fis-
sures and crevices in the small bodies of chalk> which do not
lie close together like a body of stone or clay ; and all this to
be finished in 1 2 months ! It is now almos* four years since the
act passed, and three since it began, but the progress is so small,
that if it does not go on a little &ster, neither Mr. D. nor his
son will live to see it finished* It was a job from the begin.
ning, and will continue so; and if ever finished, will never pay
pac per cent, lor the money advanced.

*432 INLAND NAVIGATION.

of the same-, that (here follow the names of the com-
pany of proprietors) and their successors, shall be a
body politic and corporate, by the name and style
of The Company of Proprietors of the Thames and
Medway Canal, and the company may raise and
contribute among themselves a competent sum of
money for making and maintaining the said canal
and collateral cut, and all feeders, basins, aqueducts,
ways, roads, i)ridges, quays, wharfs, and all other
works and conveniences requisite thereto, not ex-
ceeding in the whole 40,000/. which shall be di-
vided into shares of 100 /. each, which shall be per-
sonal estate, and to have a vote for every share, but
not to exceed five votes in the whole, although pos-
sessed of more than five shares, which votes may be
given personally or by proxy ; and in case the said
sum of 40,000 /. shall be insufficient, the company
may raise among themselves 20,000 /. more, to be
divided into shares of lOO/. 6ach as before; or it
may be raised on mortgage, and ^ix calendar months
given to pay off any part of it, with five per cent,
interest.

The company are empowered to make the "said
canal navigable for boats, barges and other vessels,
from out of the river Thames on the east side of the
town of Gravesend, in the county of Kent, through
the several parishes, hamlets, or places of Milton,
Denton, Chalk, Higham, Shorne, and Clifl?', to the
river Medway, at Nicholson's Ship Yard, all in the
«aid county ; and also ,to make a navigable cut from
out of the said canal near a place called White Wall,
in the parish of Frindsbury, into the river Medway,
to a certain point nearly opposite his Majesty's doct
yard at Chatham, and to supply the said canal and

iKtANB NAVlGATIOlr. 433

cut with water from the rivers Thames and Medway>
and from all rivers, brooks, springs, streams, rivulets,
and water courses which shall be found in digging
the same, or within 2,000 yards from the head level
of the canal or cut, or any other part^of them, and
may make soughs, tunnels, feeders, aqueducts, and
channels, as they may think proper for supplying
the said canal and cut with water, as also a basin oT

' basins within J 50 yards on either side of the canal or
cut, and also may bmld, erect, and set upon them^
or the land adjoining, bridges, piers, arches, sluices,
locks, flood gates, weirs, • dams, drains, wharfs^
quays, warehouses, toll-houses, watch-bouses, land-

, ing-places, weighing-beams, cranes^ fire-engines, or
other machines, dry docks, or other works, ways,
roads, and conveniencies, a3 where the company may
think requisite ; and. may make towing-paths, banks,
roads, and ways convenient for towiog, hauling, or
drawing boats, barges, or other vessels upon the said
canal or collateral cut, with men, horses, or other-
wise, with proper places for the said vessels to turn,
lie, or pass each other, and may use rollers, in*
clined planes, rail -ways, waggon- ways, or cranes, or
by any other manner than by or upon water.

The lands ta be taken for the canal and collateral
cut for towing-paths, ditches, drains, banks and fences,
not to exceed 40 yards in breadth, except in such
places where docks, basins, or pens of water shall be
made, or where the canal or cut shall be raised higher
or cut above 10 feet deeper than the present surface
of the land, and also except in such places where the
vessels turn, lie, or pass each other, or where engines,
warehouses, cranes, or weighing- beams are erected,
or where wharfs are made for receiving coals^ lime,

p p

V \

434 UPLAND NAVIGATION.

lime-stonc; minerals, timber, stone, or other goods^
wares, and merchandise ; and not more than five acres
of land to be taken for any basin or pen of water,
and which land for such basin or pen of water to be
made at the three extremities of the canal and cut,
namely, next Gravesend and the river Medway,
A plan and book of reference of the line of the canal
and cut are deposited with the clerks- of the county
and company, which are not to be deviated from
above 150 yards. And if proper roads, bridges,
stiles, gates, fording-places, watering-places, (for
cattle) passages, arches, tunnels, drains, back drains,
trenches, and other conveniencics for the use of the
land-owner or occupier are not made by the company,
the same may be made by the land-owner, and make
the company pay the expense. And the land-owners
through whose lands the canal or cut shall pass, shall
have a right of fishery thereon as far as the bounds
of those lands ; and nothing in this act shall pre*
judice the right of the Lord Mayor and Citizens of
London, or their successors, to diminish their power,
authority, and jorisdiction, as CGnscr\'ator of the
rivers Thames and Medway ; and an acknowledg-
ment for the company to pay the Mayor, Com-
monalty, and Citizens of London, the sum of one
shilling, and no more, for ever, yearly, and every
year, on the 24th day of June, if lawfully demanded*
And the said company shall pay to the Mayor and
Citizens of Rochester, in the county of Kent, as
conservators of the river Medway, the sum of one
shilling, and no more, for ever, yearly, and every
year, on the 24th day of June, if lawfully demanded.
And that no person or persons whatsoever shall
lay any oysters or sp:itt of oysters, or dredge for or

INLAND NAVIGATION. 435

take oysters in the said canal or collateral cut, or
cither of them, or any of the basins of other works
thereto belonging ; and the owners or occupiers of
lands may ude pleasure boats on the said canal and
cut, so as not to be made use of to carry any goods
or other things, nor pass through any lock, or pre-
judice the nj^yigation, banks, towing-paths, or other
ivorks. And this shall be taken and deemed. a pub-
lic act.

N. B. This is a most voluminous act, contain*
ing 97 clauses, many of which are mere tautology^
there being occasion for very few for securing pri-
vate property, yet as many as are wanted ; but the
number of clauses usual in navigation acts are very
much extended, and the rates of tonnage, wharfage,
and tollage are long and particular. This canal may
answer the purpose for government when at war,
but never will for the purpose of trade, as barges
wt)ald get to the mouth of the Medway by low
water in the same tide that they must enter the
canal at Gravesend, and be ready to go up to
Chatham the beginning of the flood-tide, and be
at Chatham by the time (or very near, and some-
times sooner) than a barge can go on the canal,
without the additional expense of lock-dues, horses,
and attendance in being drawn along, and this in
most instances, except when it blows a gale of wind
at east or north-east for a short time in winter : this
is not my own opinion only, but, from inquiry I
made 6f several barge-men and barge-masters at
Maidstone and JRochester, I fdund it general.

pp 2

436 IVIiANB NATIGATIOy.

Ashton-under-Lyitb, Oldham^ and Manchbs--
TBR Canal, to amend and extend. 1800.

The preambk states^ that by an act of 32 Gcq^
III. certain persons and their successors were in*
corporated by the name of The Company of Pro-
prietors of the Canal NaTJgation from Manchester
to near Ashton-under-Lyne and Oldham, and are
authorised to make and complete a canal navigarioti
from the town of Manchester at or near a Street
called Piccadilly, through a part of the parish of
Manchester, near to Fairfield in the said parish^ and.
by thence by one branch to Dunkinfield bridge, in
the town of Ashton-under-Lyne, and by another
brancl\ from Fairfield to New Mill, near the towa
of Oldham ; and also to make an aqueduct bridge
over the river Thame, at Walk Mill, near the town
of Ashton-under-Lyne aforesaid, into Dunkihfield,
from and to communicate with the said canal ; and
another aqueduct bridge over the river Medlock, to
communicate with the said canal at Boodle Wood^
in the said parish of Ashton-under-Lyne, to raise
60,O00 /. to defray the expense thereof -, and if that
sum was insufficient, they might raise 30,000/. more.
And by an act 33 Geo. III. the company of propri-
etors were enabled and authorised to extend the said
canal from a place called Clayton Demesne, in the
township of Droylston, in the parish of Manchester,
to Heaton Norris, between Manchester and Stock-
port, opposite the Three Boars' Heads ; and from
Taylof^s Barn, isn the township of Reddish, to Den-
toa, at a place called Beat Bank, adjoining the turn-
pike road between Stockport and Ashton-under-
Lyne^ and? also from the intended aqueduct bridge

INLAND NAVIGATION, 437

at Waterhouses, in Ashton-under-Lync, to Stake
Leach, at Hollingwood, in Oldham.

And by another act 38 Geo. III. the company
was enabled to perform the above works at the several
places aforesaid, and to grant further powers as is
recited, and were empowered to raise the several
sums of 60,000/. and 30*6oo/. and 30,000 /.'and
a further sum of 30,000/. It is found that the
remainder of the money cannot be raised by the
means prescribed in the last act of 38 Geo. III.'
being defective. And the company have incurred
sundry debts in the prosecution of the undertaking :
Therefore be it enacted, that the company be em-**
powered to raise the last mentioned sum of 30,0(X)/.
being the same sum of 30,000/. authorised to be
raised by the said last recited act; and if 'that sum
ishoDld be found insufficient, by virtue of this act
they are authorised to raise 20,000/. more, either
by subscription, bonds, notes, mortgage or annuity*
And this shall be deemed a public act.
' N* B. This amended act is so complicated, oc-r
casioned by the clauses for the joinings and inter-
section's being intermixed with the other parts, that
it is hardly intelligible.

Rochdale Canal, to vaky and amend. 1800.

The preamble states, that by an act passed in the
34 Geo. III. certain persons were incorporated by the
name of The Company of Proprietors of the Koch*
d^e Canal, and y/tte authorised to make and main-
tain a canal navigatt<>n from the Calder, otherwise
Calder and Hebble navigation, at or near Sowerby
bridge wharf, through or jiear Todmaden and pcyne

?d8 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Head, in the parish of Rochdale, and near the town
of Middleton, and through the parish of Prestwich-r
eum-Oldharo, all in the county of Lancaster, to join
and communicate with a canil of the Duke of Bridge-*
water, at or near Castlefidd, in the parish of
Manchester, and also, to cut a navigable branch
from the said canal at the village called Lower Place,
in Castlcton, in the parish of Rochdale, to a place
called School Lane, in the township of Castleton;
and also to make another cut to branch from the
said canal at a place called Failsworth,. in the parish
of Manchester, to the north side of the new turn-r
pike road leading from Manchester to Oldham^
near to HpUingwood Chapel, in the county aforesaid,
and to build and erect wharfs, warehouses, and all
other works and conveniencies necessary to the s^dd
navigation. And the said company were empowered
to raise, as in the recited act directed, 291,900 /. to
be divided into shares of lOo/. each, and if that
should be insufficient, they were empowered to raise
100,000/. more, as therein expressed ; and the com- •
pany have proceeded in making the said canal, cuts,
and works, and have expended the whole of the
291,900/. but are still indebted to a large amount
for lands marked out for the canal, cuts, and works,
and for goods, utensils, and implements for the use
of carrying on the works ; and much more expense
hath been and will be incurred in complering the
undertaking . than was esrimated when the rates of
tonnage granted by the act were 6xed apd settled ;
it is therefore reasonable that the company should be
(empowered to take some additional rates of tonnage
towards ap3wpring ihi: e^ccess of pxpijnse.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 439

The company have found that a deviation is ab-
solutely necessary from the original line of canal as
laid down in the pUn and book of reference in two
several parts thereof which have not begun to be cut
pr made, namely, that one of such deviations should
commence at a place called Gorell's, in the township
of Ca.stleton, Hopwood, Thornham, Middleton, and
Chadderton, in the parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham,
in the said county of Lancaster, to communicate
again at or near where the same passes Chadderton
Brook ; and f^e other deviation from the north side
of the sign of the Packhorse, at Failsworth, through
Failsworth Newton and Manchester, and county
aforesaid^ to communicate again with the old line of
canal at Butler's Lane, in the township of Man-
chester ; and a plan of the said dei'iation, and the
book of reference, are deposited as before ; and the
jcompany engage in nowise to deviate more than 50
yards from the new line laid down from Gorell's to
Chadderton Brook, and from the Packhorse to But*
ler's Lane ; and to enable the company to raise the
last sum of money, and to complete their canal, cuts,
and branches, and pay off all incumbrances, they
are authorised to raise their rates of tonnage one
halfpenny per ton per mile, not passing through a
lock, (even to lime, dung, and manure) and one
penny per ton per mile on all goods, wares, and
merchandise, timber and stone, lime, lime-stone,
dung, manure, clay, sand, and gravel, which pass
through any lock, and allow only 30 feet cube of
round or square timber to be one ton. And this is
lo be deemed a' public act.

N. B. If' we are to estimate the profits from th^
immense sum raised for completing this canal and

440 INLAND NAVIGATION.

its branches, we may venture to pronounce it one of
the first speculations in the kingdom ; and although
the navigation clauses are many, yet intersecting and
♦ joining different properties must be studiously adhered
to ; the clauses for securing private property are but
few, but attended with nccessar}' explanations..

Drahxe and Dove Canal, to amend. J 800.

The preaqible states, that by an act 33 Geo. III.
certain persons therein named, and their successors,
were incorporated by the name of The Dearne and
Dove Canal Company, with powers to make a canal
navigable for boats, barges, and other vessels from
the river Dun navigation cut, in the township of
Swinton, in the parish of Wath, to or near the town
of Barnsley, in the parish of Silkstone, and a coU
lateral cut branching out of the said canal in the
township of Worsbrough, to a close called the
Holme ; and also a collateral branch out of the said
. canal in the township of Wombwell, to a close called
Cobcar Ing, in the township of Hoyland, all in the
West Riding of the county of York, in such course
find directions as are delineated and described in plans
and a book pf reference deposited with the clerks of
the county and company;' and the said company
were empowered by the said recited act to raise
Co,000/. to complete the same, in shares of 100 /.
each,: and Mf that sum should be insufficient, they
were authorised to raise 30,000 /. more, to l>e di-
vided into half shares, and regulated to be raised,
and power to vote personally or by proxy, as the said
act expresses : And be it further enacted, that if the
last-mentioned sum of 30,000/. shall be found in-
sufficient for completing the canal, collateral cut$.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 441

"and works, they are empowered to raise 30,000/.
more, either by subscription, mortgage, bond, note,
or annuity, for the sole use of finishing and com-
pleting the undertaking, and to be used for no other
purpose whatever.

And in consideration of the very great additional
expense the said company have sustained and been
put to in making and completing the said canal, and
the several cuts and other works directed to be made
by the said recited act, beyond what was estimated
and proposed when the rates of tonnage and whar-
fage, craneag^ and- porterage payable by the said re-
cited act were settled and fixed ; it is reasonable
they should be authorised to collect some additional
rates towards answering such additional expense :
Be it therefore fiirther enacted, that it shall be lawful
for the said canal company (over and above what
they arc entitled to receive by virtue of the said
recited act) to ask, demand, take, and recover for
their own proper use and behoof, for the tonnage,
wharfage, craneage, and porterage of all goods, wares,
merchandise, coals, stone, timber, and other things
that shall be navigated thereon, one moiety or half
part of the rates and duties they now receive by
virtue of the said recited act, but not on flag, paving
stone, lime-stone, or lime, which shall have been
previously navigated or brought up the Barnsley
canal from Wakefield, to the junction of the said
Barnsley canal with the Dearne and Dove canal, at
or near Barnsley. And this shall be deemed a pub-
lic act.

"N. B. No doubt the company are well aware, while
loading the tonnage one half or 50 1, per cent, on
carriage, that it is able to bear il. .The immense

442 INLAND NAVIGATION^i

sun? of IOO5OOO/. laid out on a useful and public
undertaking, it is to be hoped will be crowned with
success to the company, who certainly calculated
their advantages, but I trust with better success than
their surveyor, who, if not assisted and authorised by
parliament, after laying out and expending 6o,000 /.
was minus 40,000 /. two thirds more than the ori-
ginal estimate.

Peake FoiiEST Canal, to alter and amend.

1800.

The preamble states, that by an act passed in the
34 Geo. III. certain persons and their successors
-were incorporated by the name and style of The
Company of Proprietors of the Peak Forest Canal^
and are authorised to complete a navigable canal
called the Peak Forest canal, from out of the canal
from Manchester, near Ashton-under-Lyne and Old-
ham, in Lancashire, at the intended aqueduct bridge
in Dunkinfield, in Cheshire, to or near Chappel
Milton, and a communication by rail-ways or stone
roads from thence to Loadsknowl, in the Peak Forest,
both in Derbyshire ; and also to make a navigable
,cut from out of the said intended canal in the town-
ship of YeardslyWhaley, in the , parish of Taxall, in
Cheshire, called Bottom's Hall, to Whaley bridge,
and to make and maintain such other riul-ways or
stone roads as by the said act is authorised to be
made, and to raise a sum of money for that purppse
not exceeding 90,000 /. and if that sum should be
found insufficient, to raise 6o,000 /. more, to be di-
vided into shares, and votes regulated as the said,
recited act expresses ; and the company have ex-
pended in completing a great part of the said several

INLAND NAVIGATION, 44S

undertakings 117,140/. and have incurred sundry-
debts which are yet unsatisfied, and the recited act
is in some cases defective, and it is requisite it should
be amended : Be it therefore enacted, that the com-
pany of proprietors may raise what money is wanted to
liquidate the said debts, and to finish and complete
the said canal, cuts, and rail-ways, and other works^ '
either by creating new shares, or on notes, bonds, or
mortgage, and in such manner as the committee or.
general assembly of the company shall think proper.
And this shall be taken and deemed a public
act.

N. B. This canal carries a very promising aspect ;
^nd after expending near 1 50,000 /. which they were
by the first act empowered to raise, the liberty given
by this act of appropriating a further unlimited sum
shews the confidence put in the company of pro-
prietors^ as well z& in the success of the undertaking.

HUDDERSPIELD CaNAL, TO AMEND. 1800.

The preamble states, that by an act passed in the
34 Geo. III. certain persons and their successors
were incorporated by the name and style of The
Huddersfield Canal Company, and were authorised
to make and complete a canal to be called the Hud->
dersfield canal, navigable for boats, barges, and
other vessels, from and out of the canal of Sir John
Jlamsden, hart, at a place between the King's Mill
and the town of Huddersfield, in the West Riding
of Yorkshire, to join and communicate with the
<:anal navigation from Manchester, to and near
Ashton-under-Lyne and Oldham, in Lancashire, at
the highway in the town of Ashton-under-Lyne afore-
Said^ near Dunkinfield bridge, and to raise among

444 INLAND NAVIGATION.

themselves a competent sum of money for making
and completing the same, and other works kuthorised
to be made by the said act, not exceeding in the
whoje 18'1,000/. (except as therein excepted) and
if that sum should be found insufficient for making
and completing the same, they were enabled to raise
and contribute amgng themselves 90,000/. more, or
to raise it on bonds, notes, or mortgage : and wheress
the whole of the sum of 184,000/. was originally
subscribed, but a very considerable deficiency in the
payment thereof has been occasioned by the bank-
ruptcy and insolvency of several of the subscribers
thereto, and the whole of the subscription which the
company have been able to recover, hath (together
with tlie sum of 14,182/. which is all the money
the said company have been able to borrow on mort-
gage) been expended in the prosecution of the works
of the said canal, and in carrying into effect the
powers of the said act ; and doubts have arisen
whether the said company are able, under the powers
of the said act, to raise the sum of (50,000 /. or any
part thereof, by calls from the respective proprietors
of shares in the said Huddcrsfield canal ; and the
said recited act hath in other things been found de-
fective, and requires alteration and amendment : Be
it therefore enacted, that the said company be auw
thorised from time to time to make any call or calls
for money from the proprietors^ not exceeding '20 /.
in the whole sum for every share for discharging the
debts, and for finishing and completing the said
canal and other works, as is recited in the said
act.

And the said company are hereby authorised, ip
case they shall think proper, to raise any sura of

INLAND NAVIGATION. 445

money that shall be found necessary for finishing,com-
pleting, and maintaining the said Huddersfield canal,
and other works, tliat shall not exceed in the whole
274,000/. being the amount of the two sums of
184,000/. and yO,OOo/. as by the recited act, or
by creating new shares by virtue of this act, or by
promissory notes payable at distant times, with law-
ful interest for the same ; and every proprietor of a
new- created share or shares in the" said canal shall
have a vote for every such share, not exceeding lO
votes personally, nor 10 other votes by proxy. And
this to be deemed a public act, .

N. B. The navigation clauses are very long and
numerous, especially those to preserve the springs,
brooks, and water courses that supply several mills,
which this canal cuts in its progress. The wonderful
sums of money raised for carrying on navigable
canals is astonishing, but shews their utility, and also
the richness of the country, for what in other coun-
tries in Europe that I have seen could not be effected,
even with the assistance of government, is in England
effected by a few obscure individuals, which proves
that nothing is wanting to promote trade and com-
merce in this country.

Leicester and Melton Mowbray Canal, tq

AMEND. 1800.

The preamble states, that by an act of 3 1 Geo.
III. cap. 89, certain persons therein named, and
their successors, were incorporated by the style of
The Company of Proprietors of the Navigation from
the Leicester Navigation to Melton Mowbray in the
county of Leicester, and are authoristd and em-
powered to make and keep navigable the rivers Wreak

445 IKLAND ^'AVI6ATI€)!C.

and Eye, in manner therein mentioned, and to taist
any sum of money for the defraying the expense
thereof, not exceeding 25,000/. but if that sum
should be found insufficient, they might raise a far-
ther sum of 5,000 /. and in proceeding to complete
the same, they have expended the two sums of
25,000/. and 5,000 /. together with all the tolls and
duties they have received since opening the said
navigation j amounting to a farther sum of 7,000/. and
upwards ; but have contracted debts to the amount
of upwards of 4,000/. and some- of the works are
still incomplete : Therefore be it enacted, that the
company of proprietors be authorised to raise among
themselves, according to their present shares, or by.
the admission of new subscribers, any sum not ex*
cecding 10,000/. and to have it divided into shares
as the recited act specifies, and to have votes and
proxies in the same manner as the original subscribers,
or they may borrow it on mortgage.

And in consideration of the great additional ex-
penses of the said company, beyond what was esti-
mated when the rate* of tonnage were settled and
fixed by virtue of the said act, and the still further
expense they will necessarily be put to in fully com-
pleting the said works, it is reasonable they should
be authorised to collect some additional rates towards
^swering such additional expense : Be it therefore
enacted, that from and after passing of this act, it
shall be lawful for the company of proprietors to
ask, demand, take, and receive for. their own use
and behoof as hereinafter mentioned, (here follows
a long list of the advanced rates and tonnage to dif-
ferent places). And this shall be taken and deemed
a public act.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 44?

N. B. 'As -this canal interferes with the Oakham
and other canals, care is taken to have several spe-
cific clauses to secure the rates of tonnage oh each
so as not to injure one another, and being only an
amended act there arc no more than the just and
necessary clauses.

Oakham Canal, to alter and amend. 1800.

The preamble states, that an act passed 33 Geo:
III. whereby certain persons were incorporated by the
name of the Company of Proprietors of the Oakham
Canal, and were authorised to make a navigable canal
from Nill-Close-Homestead, in the parish of Melton
Mowbray, in Leicestershire, into Cutt's Close, in
the parish of Oakham, in Rutlandshire, and to make
land erect wharfs, warehouses, and other buildings
and conveniences necessary to the navigation, and
the company were authorised to raise among them-
selves 56,000/. and if that sum was insufficient the
company were also empowered to raise a farther sum
of 20,000/. on mortgage or other securities ; and the
company have proceeded in making and completing
a great part of the canal and works, and have not only
expended the whole of the 56,000/. (after deducting
the calls and proportions of sundry persons who are
become insolvent, or in arrear) but are indebted in
considerable sums ; and the company have not been
able to borrow or raise any part of the sum of
20,000/. by the ways and means in the said act
mentioned, and. they are now unable to raise any
further Sum of tnoney whatsoever, although about
10 miles of the line of the said canal out of 15
miles have been cut and completed; and whereas
divers alterations and ame;idinents in the act are

448 INLAND NAVIGATION.

necessary, and further powers should be granted,
wherefore be it enacted, that the said company
of proprietors of the Oakham canal are hereby au-
thorised to raise or borrow any further sum of
money not exceeding 30,000/. (although the whole
of the sums of 56yOOO/. and 20,000/. allowed to be
raised by the recited act may not have been raised).

And it is hereby declared /lawful for the said
company or their committee to raise the sum of
30,000/. or such part thereof as they shall think fit,
by creating such number of new or additional shares
as they shall think requisite for that purpose ; and
they may also borrow money on bond or promissory
notes if most ready and expedient; and the said
company shall at all times take the additional
tonnage payable on iron, timber, stone, or other
goods, wares, and merchandise, as the company of
the Leicester navigation to Melton Mowbray, which
comes through the basin of the Oakham canal, by
their last act are entitled to. And this is deemed a
public act. <

N. B. What private property clauses are inserted
are but few, but wholly depend on securing the
water in several springs and brooks belonging to the
nobility in the neighbourhood. The other clauses
as usual in navigation acts. The advance of tonnage
will make a great addition in profit on this navigatiom
They are limited not to raise more than 66,000 fc in
the whole by virtue of both acts.

Lancaster Canal, to complete. 1800.

The preamble sets forth, that by an act passed 32
Geo. in. certain persons therwn named and their
successors were incorporated by the name of the

INIiAKB NAVIGATXOK. 44g

Gojttipaiiy of Propnetort of the Lancaster caoal navi-
gation, and were authorised to njake and complete
the said canal and branches, and the roads, ways and
conveniences to the same belonging* and to raise a
sum, of money not exceeding 414>100/. and if that
sum was found insufficient they might raise 200,000/.
more, either among themselves or by admission of
new subscribers, or by mortgage ; and the said com-
pany have proceeded in making certain pares of the
said canal in the county of Lancaster> and have not
only expended the whole ofthc said surti of 414,100/*
(after deducting the calls and proportions of sundry
persons who are becan^ insolvent and in avrear, and
after reserving the sum of 6o,000/. by the said act
.directed to be expended in making and completing
<be .said canal in the county of Westmorland), but
have borrowed and taken up at interest 37,804/. 5s.
part df the said sum of 200*000/. And the said
company have incurred sundry debts in the prose-
.cution of the said undertaking which are yet unsa-
tisfied. And whereas by another act 33 Geo. III.
the said recited act w^s amended, and power given
to make a branch from the said canal near a place
called Galgate, through' the townships of Ellel and
Thurnham to communicate with the Dock at Glasson
in the said county palatine ; and more money than
^he company have yet been able to raise will be re-
quired to liquidate and discharge the debts of the
company, and to finish and complete the canal,
branches, and other works to be done : Therefore
be it enacted, that the said company of proprietors
be empowered to raise the said sum of 200,000/.
or so much thereof as shall be necessary for making
and completing the said canal navigation and works,

G G

450 INLAND KAVlGATltiir^

over and above the $am of 414^100/. lo the £fst
recited act mentioned, (although the last menfiooed
sum, by reason of the interest payable oo €Um sub*
scribed, the arrears of calls of subscripdons, apd
the reserving the sum of 6o,000/. may not have
been wholly raised) and that the money to be raised
by virtue of this act shall be applied in <iisohafging
the debts owing by the said company of pvopcieton,
including the said sum of d7i604/. 6/. and such
further debts as they may contract in the completing
the said canal, cuts, and works thereto belonging :
and be it enacted, that it shall be lawful for the
company to raise the aoo.OOO/. by creating new ad-
ditional shares at 30/. per share, or at such other
rate or value as the company, or a general meetiiig,
shall think proper to declare. And tins shall be
deemdd a public act.

N.B. The immense sum af 014,100/. nused tp
complete only one canal, proves the ine^austible
resources and riches of the country, as well as the
wonderful spirit of individuals to apply so large a
portion of their property in speculations in ti^de, but
the utility of which is demonstrated by the effect.
The clauses to secure private property, and those
usual in navigation acts are well timed and particu-
larly well adapted.

Salisbort to Southampton andNortham Canal,
to alter and amend. 1800.

The preamble states, that an act p^sed 35 Geo.
.HI. whereby certain persons therein named and their
successors were incorporated by the name and style
of the Company of Proprietors for making and main-
taining a Navigable Canal from the town of Souib^

<imptPn to the city of New Sarum, in the county of
Wilts, with a collateral branch to Northam within
the liberties of the town of Southampton, and they
were authorised to raise among themselves the sum
of 56,000/. And the company have proceeded in
the execution of that act, and have laid out the
whole of the line of the said canal and collateral
branch, and have cut a considerable part thereof, and
have expended the said sum of 56,000/. without being
i^ble to complete the said canal, and have endeavoured
to procure the further sum of ' 1 5,000/. (part of
the additional sum of 30,000/. authorised to be raised
by that act) by addition^ shares as therein directed,
but without effect ; and it would tend to a more
speedy and effectual completion of the said canal, if
the said company were empowered to raise the whole
cf the said sum of 30,000/. and also an additional
sum of money by mortgage of the tolls, rates, and
duties of the said canal, and it is therefore requisite the
said recited act should be amended and altered : there-
fore be it enacted, that the said company of pro->
prietors may raise 40,000/. (above the former 56,000/.)
or any part thereof, as the company may think pro-
per, at legal interest, on the credit of the canal and
collateral branch ; and that no second sum of money
shall be drawn out of the treasurer's hands until it
shall be made appear by clear and proper . vouchers,
at a meeting of the committee, that the former
sum drawn for has been properly and faithfully ex-
pended. And this shall be taken and deemed a
public act.

N. B. This as well as the former short amended
act proves a great deal may be said to the purpose iA
a littie compass^ ^d be as efficient as a long detail^

a a 2

452 Iff LAND NAVlCATlO«r.

and it is to be hoped the assistance given by this Kt
will enable tlie company to complete that most use*
ful navigation and the collateral branch.

HORNCASTLE CaNAL, TO AMEND. 1800.

The preamble states, that an act passed 32 Geo«
III. whereby certain persons therein named were in-
corporated by the name of the company of Pro-
prietors of the Horncastle navigation, in the county
of Lincoln, and were authorised to deepen, widen,
and enlarge the said canal from the junction thereof
with the river Witham to the town of Tattersal, to
extend the same into the river Bain, to make the
river Bain and several streams communicating there-
with, near or in the town of Horncastle, navigable
into Jthe town of Horncastle ; and for that purpose
to raise among themselves the sum of 1 5,000/. and
in case that sum was insufficient, they were to raise
among themselves or by mortgage 10,000/. more
and whereas great progress has been made in the
work, and they have raised and expended not only
to the amount of the 1 5,000/. but have also bor-
rowed great part of the further sum of 10,000/. and
have incurred some debts, and are greatly in arrear
to the several subscribers for interest on their seve-
ral subscriprions, and without being enabled to raise
a larger sum of money they will be unable to com -
plete the works of the said undertaking, and to dis-
charge their debts : Therefore be it enacted, that
the said company be hereby authoriacd to raise, as
soon as the passing of this act, the further sum of
20,000/. either by themselves or' the admission of
new subscribers, or by mortgage, or annuities, or on
bonds ; and to pay the interest of which and the
other advances, additional tonnage, rates, and duties

INLAND NAVIGATION*. 453

tire hereby authorised to be taken, as by the act is
therein expressed. And this shall be taken and
deemed a public act,

N. B. The clauses to secure private property are
few but expressive, and the usual navigation act
clauses are couched in as concise a manner as pos-
sible ; and by the goods mentioned passing on the
canal, and the new tonnage arising therefrom, it should
appear, when complete, to be of the utmost utility,

Kenn£t AND Avon Canal, to amend. 1801.

, The preamble states, that an act passed 34 Geo.
III. whereby certain persons and their successors were
incorporated by the ^name of the Company of Pro-
prietors of the Kennet and Avon Canal Navigation,
were authorised to make, complete, and maintain
the said navigation in manner thereby directed, and
to raise among themselves 420,000/. to complete the
$ame, in 3,500 shares, and no person was to hold
less than half a share, nor more than 50 shares, and
if the said sum should be found insufficient, the
company was empowered to raise the further sum of
1 50,000/. more, either by themselves or admission
. of new subscribers, or by mortgage or annuity; the
shares to be deemed personal estate. And whereas by
another act passed in 36 Geo. III. to vary and alter
the line of the canal, authorised to be made by an
act passed in the 34th Geo. III. for making a navig-
able canal from the river Kennet at or near the town
of Newbury, in Berkshire, to the river Avon, at or
near the city of Bath, and also certain navigable cuts,
as are therein described ; the said company were em-
powered to vary the line of the canal : and whereas
by an act 38 Geo. III. the company were authorised

464 INLAND NAVrCATlAw.

to vary the. line of the canal, and the said recitcid
acts were amended, and the said company have pro-
ceeded in making and completing certain parts of
the said canal, and calls to the amount of 120/. shares,
and 60/. a half share, being the due proponion of
the sum of 4 10,000/. in respect to the 3500 shares
have been made, and a number of shares and half
shares Imve been declared by the comnuttee to ht
forfeited, and have been merged, and the money
due thereon has been called for by the committee
upon the proprietors of the remaining shares and
half shares in the saJB undertaking, amounting to
17/- 4s. 7 id' on each share, and 8/. \2s. Syi on
each half share, and there is yet a further sum want-
ing, and necessary, more than the said company hav6
been able to raise or can borrow by virtue of tbfe
said acts to complete the sad canal and worRs, and
the said proprietors are desirous of being relieve^
from contributing any further sums in respect of any
other of the said shares and half shares which may
hereafter be merged, and that an adequate sum may
\>t raised to complete the said canal by voluntarjr
subscriptions for new shares in the said undertaking
in manner hereafter mentioned ; and the said recited
iacts are in other respects defective, and the powers
and provisions thereof require to be altered and
amended : therefore be it enacted, that for carrying
into execution the purposes of the said recited ^ct,
and this act, it shall be lawful for the Said com-
pany of proprietors to raise the farther sum of
240,000/. by creating 4000 pew shares, and that
3000 of the said new shares may be taken by such
of the present proprietors of shares and half shares in
ttie said undertaking as h^ye su^scvibed to the sam«

H 6o/» ai share, and to bediii^i^ible into half shares,
and the remaining 1000 new shares may be disposed
of by the committee by public auctions, at the
Exchange Coffee-house in Bristol, or Garraway's
CofFee-hbuse in London^ or some other si^itable place
n the committee may think proper, and not less
than 20 nor more than 50 shares to be sold in one
day^s sale, all which shares and hajf shares shall be
deemed personal estate, and be transmissible as such»
and all the provisions of the former acts extended to
such new shares, and not .more than 5/. a share, nor
snore than 2/. 10^. a half share shall be called for at
any one time, nor above 15/. per share and 7/. \0s.
per half share be called for in the whole in any one
year, and that no call shall be imade until at lea^t
3000 shares are subscribed fojc ; and no proprietor
shall have moi^ than 50 shares, and may vote for
every share not exceeding 30 either by person or
ppoxy ; and jf the 4000 shares should not be disposed
of to raise the 240,000/. it may be raised by mort-
gage, promissory notes, or annuities. And it is far*
ther enacted, that no interest shall be payable for tlie
money so to be called on for the new shares and half
shares of this undertaking until the canal and said
works shall be completed and 6nished. The rates,
tolls, and duties which shall be received by the com-
pany, after paying of such rents and other payments
,as arc charged thereon, shall be applied to the com^
pleting and finishing the said canaL And this shall
be taken and deemed a public act.

N. B. This act is rather prolix, and complicated
with other navigations, so that it is dubious giving
an opinion on the whole. The clauses seem to be

456 INLAND KAVIGATION.

guarded to secure private property, and the usual
navigation clauses are proper and sufficient.

Grand Surry Canal. 1801.

The preamble states, that an act passed in 41st of
Geo. III. that certain persons and their successors
shall be one body politic and corporate by the name
and style pf the Company of Proprietors of the
Grand Surry Canal Navigation, empowered to make
the said canal, branches, and collateral cuts therein
authorised to be made, and the said company are
empowered to raise among themselves or otherwise
6o,000/. to be divided into shares of 1 OO/. each, to
have votes personally or by proxy as usual, and the
shares to be personal estate ; and if not raised among
themselves it may be raised by bond or mortgage,
which mortgage may be transferred in the usual
way.

The company are hereby authorised to make and
maintain a canal navigable for boats, barges, and
other vessels out of the river Thames, at or near
Wilkinson's gun wharf in the parish of St. Mary,
Rotherhithc, in the county of Surry, to a place called
Woodpecker's Lane in the parish of St. Nicholas,
Deptford, in Kent, and from thence to near or
through the several parishes, townships, hamlets, and
places of St. Giles, Camberwell, Walworth, St. Mary,
Lambeth, Kennington Common, Stockwell, Clapham,
3alham^ Streatham, Upper Tooting, Lower Tooting,
to the town of Mitcham, in the county of Surry ;
and also to make and maintain divers collateral cuts
and branches navigable for boats, barges, and other
vessels from and through the following places, that
is to say, from the said canal near to his Majesty's

.IJShAXtlf NAVI0ATIOII. 45J

^ictdalling office, in Kent, and from Woodpecker'f
Lane to Butt Lane, in Dcptford, and to Peckham^
and from thence to HoraeroongerXan^ in the parisk
of St. Mary, Newington, in Surry, and from Ken-
aiington Common in the said county to enter and
xoramunicate with the river Thames at or near
Cumberland Gardens, at Vauxhall in the parish of
St. Mary, Lambeth, in the county of Surry afore-
said, and to supply the said canal and branches, and
^collateral cuts whilst making, and at all times for
-ever after the sanie shall be made, with water from
the said river Thames, and from all rivers, brooks,
springs, streams, rivulets, and water courses which
shall be found in digging the said canal, excepting
within 2000 yards of the river Wandle or any other
stream running into the same. And the said com-
pany may make rail-ways or navigable cuts, with
towing-paths to the same, from any part of the said
canal to any place within 1500 yards thereof, having
the land owners* consent and paying for the ground^
60 that such cut shall not be within 2000 yards of
the said river Wandle, and no water to be taken out
of. the a£6resaid river Wandle for the use of the
canal or cut under any pretence whatever.

And it is further enacted, that where the said
canal shall cross and pass over the river Wandle the
company shall erect, and for ever maintain, a good
and sufficient aqueduct or aqueducts, the height of
which during the whole breadth and length thereof
across the said river shall be at least 1 5 feet, measur-
ing from the surface of the water of the river Wan-
dle at mark-stake high to the surface of the water
in the said canal. And further, that where the
isaid canal shall cross and pass over a certain intended

45B XKtAire RAVIGXTIOir.

fail-way to be established frosi Wmismattk to
Croyden and Carsbalton, in the coanty of Sunyy
under the authority of a bill now pending in parlia*
ment, if the same shall be carried into a law, the
said company shall, at their own expense^ erect, and
for ever maintain, a good and sufficient aqueduct,
which shall in no case occupy in depth more tiian
fioor feet from the surface of the water in the said
canal, (on the same level on which it crosses the river
Wandle). to the underside of the said aqueduct, so
that loaded carriages may pass under the same with-
0ut obstruction ; and that the span of the arch or
opening of the aqueduct shall be full ] 6 feet wide.

And the said coitapany may make rollers, inclined
planes, railways, waggon-ways, cranes, fire or steam
engines, or other woiics, cuts, or branches to the
aaid canal, as they shall think proper; and the
breadth of the canal, or the branch or cut, with the
towing-paths, ditches, drains, and fences, shall not
exceed 33 yards, except in such places where any
docks, basins, reservoirs, or pens of water, shall be
madCf or where it shall be judged proper for boats,
or other vessels to turn, lie, or pass each other, or
where engines, warehouses, cranes, or weighing- beams
inay be erected, or wharfs for the reception of coals,
timber, goods, wares, or merchandise, or where the
canal branches, collateral cut ox cuts, shall be raised,
pr cut above five feet deeper than the present sur*
lace of land.

And the said company may, and are authorised to
make a collateral cut from the said canal near to the
town of Deptford, in Kent, into Greenland Dock,
in the county of Surry, which said dock, in con-
sideration of certain sums of money, annual pay«

ineftts, or otherwise, a$ shall be agreed on between
flie proprietdrs of the said dock and the canal com-*
pany^ shall be free and open for the company's boats^
barges, or other vessels, as they may direct to makd
use of, lay in, load, of unload, pass through, into,
6r out of the said canal, and to be under all such
rules, regulations, and bye lail^ as the canaU branches,
tollateral cuts, and other works art subject to; and
a plan, with a book of reference, of the line of th4
canal, branches, and collateral cuts, are dep6sited
with the clerks of the peace for Kent and Surry, and
ivith the clerk of the company, which shall not be
deviated from without the consent of the land-owners',
in writing ; and every boat, barge, or other vessel
passing in or dut of any lock immediately commu->-
iiicating with the Thames, shall pay for the same aft
one mile of regulated tonnage, and which in no case
^all be less than five tons ; or for passing any in^
clihed plane, the same as a lock : the articles liable
to pay tonnage are every thing that it is possible to
think of or enumerate, and from 2d, to 6d. per ton
per mile.

And the company shall pay to the Lord Mayor
and Commonalty, and Citizens of the city of Lon-
don, the sum of 21. 2s. as a fine or acknowledg-
ment for the liberty of opening or enlarging commu-
nications between the said canal and the rivet
Thames, at or near Wilkinson's gun wharf, and at
or near Vauxhall, as aforesaid ; and shall also pay to
the Lord Mayor, Commonalty, and Citizens of
London, their successors, collectors, or assigns for
ever, an annual rent or sum of 6o/. to be paid half-
yearly, at Lady-day and Michaelmas ; and th^ width

460 INLAND NAVIGATION.

of the lock entering the Thames, at WiIkinson*s gun
wharf, and also at Vauxhall, shalf not exceed 32
feet. And this shall be taken and deemed a pub«
lie act.

N. B. This is a very long act, containing 91
clauses, many of which are for securing private
property, and the other as usual in all canal navi*
gation acts, with others for securing the rights and
privileges of the citizens of London.

River Hull to Leven Bridge Canal. ISOI.

The preamble states, that the making and main^
taining a navigable canal from the river Hull, in the
East Riding of the county of York, to Leven Bridge^
near the town of Leven, would not only open a com-
munication for the more commodious conveyance of
goods, wares, and merchandise, between the said
town of Leven and the port of Kingston-upon^-Hull,
but would also tend to the improvement of the
agriculture of the country, by rendering the carriage
of lime and manure more easy and convenient, and
would in other respects be of public utility. And
whereas Charlotte Bethell, of Rise, in the county
of York, widow, is seised or possessed of the lands
and grounds through which the said canal is to pas^
and is willing and desirous to make and complete
such canal, and whereas part of the said lands and
grounds are copyhold, and held of the manor of
Leven, of which manor the said Charlotte Bethell is
the lady ; and in order for facilitating this intended
navigation, she hath purchased the copyhold interest
in such part of such lands and grounds, and the sanc^c
(consisting of about 10 acres) have been surrendered

to the use of her and her heirs, whereby the copy*
hold interest therein has been extinguished ; and
she the s^d Charlotte Bethell is willing to be at the
expense of making and completing such navigable
canal ; but inasmuch as such cannot be done with^
but the authority of parliament, be it therefore
enacted, that from and after the passing of this act,
the said Charlotte Bethell shall and may, and she
and her tenants are hereby empowered to make and
complete* a navigable canal for boats, barges, and
other vessels from and out of the river Hull, in the
parish of Leven, near the boundary between Eske
and Leven Cans, to Leven bridge, in the same Rid-
ing, and to supply the said canal with water from
the river Hull, and all ^uch brooks, springs, &c. as
shall be found in digging or making the said canal ;
and also such and so many soughs, tunnels, feeders
aqueducts, and channels, for supplying the said canal
with water, as the said Charlotte Bethel!, or the
persons authorised, shall deem proper; and may
make, build, and erect upon the said canal, or upon
the lands adjoining or near the same, bridges, piers,
arches, tunnels, aqueducts, sluices, flood-gates, weirs,
pens for water, water stanks, dams, wharfs, quays,
toll-houses, warehouses, houses, landing-places,
weighing-beams, cranes, fire-engines, or other ma-
chines, dry docks, and other works, ways, roads,
and convcniencies, as and where the said Charlotte
Bethell, or persons so authorised as aforesaid, shall
think proper and convenient for the said navigation.

And the lands or grounds taken for the use of the
$aid canal, and for the towing-paths, ditches, drains,
«nd fences, shall not exceed 46 yards in breadth,
cccept where basins, docks, or pens of water shall be

4(lt ntAKP iTAVidAtiOrl

•

thade, br where the said canal shall be cut abore
nine feet deeper than the present surface of land^ nor
in liny place above 59 yiards broad ; and a map de«
•cribing the line of the canal, and a boofn of reference^ .
are deposited with the clerk of the peace for ,thc
£ast Kiding, which shall not be deviated from,
without the consent of the owners and occupiers of
lands^ and shall not be subject to the controiil of the
commissioners of sewers; and the said can^ shall
be made by the direction, and pursuant to the de«
termination of William Jessop, of Newark-upon-
Trent, engineer, and James Creassy, of fiuxwood
Coppice, in Sussex, engineer ; and in case either of
the above-named engineers should die, or decline to
^t, or if the two engineers should differ in opinion,
all the powers and authorities shall be transferred and
vested in John Rennie, of Stamford- Street, in the
county of Surry, engineer, and if he should die or
decline to act, then unto such engineer as the two
engineers shall appoint in writing ; and the lord or
lady of the said manor, for the time being, shall have
the wliole exclusive right of fishery of the said canal.
And this shall be deemed a public act.

Wilts and Berks Canal. 1801.

The preamble states^ that an act passed 35 Geo.
III. whereby certain persons, and their successorg
therein described, were united into a company for
making and completing a canal and cuts, by the name
and style of The Company of Proprietors of the
Wilis and Berks Canal Navigation, and were au-
thorised to raise among themselves 111,900/. for
making, carrying on, and completing the said canal^
and other works and conveniencies thereto belongingg^

ItrtAKI) KAVlGATlOir* 403

to be divided into ^ares of 100 /. ^c^l; (fid if that-
alim should be found insuflplcieoft, the s2u4.^pinpaiUy
may nu9e further sum^ of tfnoney, «o as thj: wbplf
sum shall not exceed l5Qfi00l any j^rt of thp laa|t
mentioned sum may be raised by inortgiLge^ pot^^,
bonds, or annuities. And whereas only r,4,l:90;A
part of the llj^gooi. was originally S]ib$ccibe4>'iV)4
only the sum of 6 1,512/; 0^. l^. h«s yet ,t«^
actually paid, jind the :tirCa$ur^ t;^ .t;^p ^id :WJPp?flijr
has advanced to them the «u«i of 3,79l5/- IpJ^ 7,^
for which the company havje engaged ito jpay hini
interest, and that all the m^ney thj^t has bf ^ raised
has been ^iiqptaded. io the vj^rosQcjxtioP pf %W WPrJ%
and in carrying into e|&ct the purpose^ of the ^ai4
recited act, aOd W/b a]»> ipqurred ^unjdjy debts ,ia
forwarding the said undertaking, and have complete^
^ great part diereof, .but it is found that much more
expense hA9 been and will be inqurred in coinpletjpg
the said ufidertakit^ than it v^as .orjgio^Iy estimated
at, and more money than .the Qoji;n^iaup(y have becfi
,able to raise will be required to discharge the said
debts, and finish and coq^plete the <;aaial, cuts, and
ptber works by the ^d act authorised to be done ;
|ind the powers and ^provisions in the said act have
been found defective, and it is requisite that they
should be altered and extended: Therefore be it
enacted, that the said company be hereby autho-
rised to raise the sum of 200,000 /. or so much
thereof as shall be necessary for the completing the
said canal navigation and works, over and above thp
said sum of 111,900/. in the said recited act men-*
tioned, (although the last mentioned sum, by reasoa
•f the whole npt being subscribed for, and the

464 INLAND NAVIGATlOm

arrears of tails or subscriptions, and interest due off
sums advanced, hath not been wholly raised) and
that the money to be raised by virtue of this act
shall be applied in paying the debts owing by the saidi^
eompaoy, including the said sum of 3,796/. \5s. 7d^
advanced to them as aforesaid, and for which they
have engaged to pay interest, and such further dcbt»
as they shall contract in -completing the said canaly^
cuts, and other works, and the ttioney may be pro-
cured by creating new shares, or on mortgage or
promissory notes, payable in 10 years, with 5/. per
cent, or made stock of in the canal ; the voting by
new admission shares to be as in the other recited act
as to original shares, and to be deemed personal
estate. And this shall be taken and deemed a pub*
lie act.

N. B. Here are a x'ast mai\y clauses (50 in all)
most of which are what are termed canal navigation
clauses, to secure and explain where one canal i*
liable to trench on another, and therefore many ex-
planations, describing the termination of the canal,
branches, and cuts, at Chippenham, Calne, Trow«
bridge, &c. The junction with the Kennet and Avon
and Abingdon are carefully explained in the act,
too long and useless to insert here. One thing more
ought to be noticed, to shew how exact the estimate
is made for completing the whole of the works,
111,900/. — and can have the assurance to petition
parliament for a new act to raise 200,000/. ta
finish !

BUBSMEKE CaXAL, TO ALTER, BXtEND, ANB

AMEND. 1801*

The preamble states, that an act passed in 33 Gto^
III. for making and maintaining a navigable canal
from the river Severn, at Shrewsbury, to the rivey
Mersey, at or near Netherpool, in Cheshire, and
also for making certain collateral cuts from the said
canal ; and certain persons therein named, who should
be nominated and appointed in manner therein men-^
tioned, were united into one body corporate, by
the name and style of The Company of Proprietors
of the EUesmere Canal, and were authorised to
make and complete a canal, navigable for boats,
barges, and other vessels, from and out of the river
Severn, in the liberties of the town of Shrewsbuiy^v
in the county of Salop, to linite with the river
Mersey, at Netherpool, in the county of Chester,
and also to make several collateral cuts to branch
out of the said canal, as in the said act mentioned.

And whereas by anoi;her act of 36 Geo. III. to
explain and amend that pressed in the 33 Geo. III. for
making a navigable canal from the river Severn, at
Shrewsbury, to the river Mersey, at Netherpool, and
making certain collateral cuts from the canal, and
varying and altering the parts of the Whitchurch
line of the said canal, and for extending the same
from Franckton common to SKerryman*s bridge, in
the said parish of Whitchurch, in the county of Salop^
and for making several other branches and collateral
cuts to communicate therewith ; the said company
were authorised to vary and alter th^ line of the said
canal and cuts between Franckton common and
Whitchurch, in the same act mejorioDed) and t0

H U

466 INLAND NAVIGATION.

make, extend, and maintain several new branches to
communicak therewith. And by another act of 36
Geo. III. to explain and amend that of 33 Geo. III.
the company of the said Eljesmere canal were au-
thorised to vary the line of the said canal and cuts
between Ruabon and the city of Chester, and to make
several new branches to communicate therewith ; afld
it is requisite that some of the powers of the said re-
cited acts should be altered, Therefore be it enacted,
that the said company of the EUesmere canal shall
be and are authorised, immediately after passing this
act, to make and extend a new branch from the said
Whitchurch branch of the said Ellesmere canal, at
a place called the New Mills, in the parish of Whit-
church, to communicate with the said Chester canal^
in the township of Stoke, and parish of Acton, ia
Cheshire, with such trenches, feeders, and other
works and conveniencies as may be necessary for
such new branch of the canal, which said branch or
extension of the said EUesmere canal is intended
to be made through the several parishes of Whit-
church, Doddington, Whitchurch, and Hinton, in
Shropshire, Malpas, Wrenbury, Baiddily, and Acton,
in Cheshire, Tushingham-cum-Grindley, Bickley,
Wirswall, Marbury-cum-Quoisley, Marbury, Nor-
bury, Wrenbury-cum*Frith, Baddily, Buriand, Hur-
Icston, and Stoke, all in the county of Chester. And
the said company of the EUesmere canal are autho-
rised to erect and execute all such works as shall be
requisite for making and completing the said branch
and extension of the EUesmere canal.

And a survey has been made to ascertain the
certainty of making the said branch and ex-*
tension of the EUesmere canal, and three plans and

INLAND NAVIOATION. 46/

hooks of reference are left with the clerks of the
peace for the counties of Salop and Chester, and with
the clerk of the Conipany, in order to shew the line
or course of such branch and extension, which is
not to be deviated from without the consent of the
owners or occupiers of the lands and grounds through
which it may be wanted to pass ; and if j:here are any
errors in describing the line, it is not to prevent the
making the canaL And this is deemed and taken as
a public actfc

N. B. There is in this act a vast number of clauses
to secure private property, in case any deviation
should be made from the line laid down in the
plans. This is the fourth act passed for the Ellesmere
canal, and although every act made was not to be de-
viated from, yet each of them has been violated;
the other clauses are as usual in ail canal navigation
acts.

Gkand Junction Canal, for altering. 1801*

The preamble states, that by an act passed in the
33 Geo. IIL for making a navigable canal from the
Oxford canal, at Braunston, in Northamptonshire, to
join the river Thames, at or near Brentford, in Mid-
dlesex, and also certain collateral cuts from the said
canal, certain persons in the said act named were in-^
corporated by the name and style of Thq Company
of Proprietors of the Grand Junction Canal, for
making the said canal and collateral cuts, and several
other works necessary for carrying the said act into
execution, and were authorised to raise 600,000 /.
And by another act of the 34 Geo. III. the company
were authorised to make navigable cut3 from the
towns of Buckingham and Aylesbury, in Bucking-

R H 2

469 INLAND NAVIGATION.

hamshire, to communicate with the said canal, and
a cut or feeder from the town of Wendover, in the
said county, to the summit of the canal at Tring, in
Hertfordshire, for the purpose of supplpng the said
canal with water. And another act was obtained in
the 33 Geo. III. to authorise the said company to
vary the course of a part of the canal in Hertford-
shire, and for amending and altering the first recited
act. And two other acts were made in the 33 Geo.
III. one for making a navigable cut from the said
canal at Norwood, in Middlesex, to Paddington ;
and the other to make a navigable cut from the town
of Watford to the town of St. Albans, in Hertford-
shire. And another act was passed in the 36 Geo.
III. for enabling the company to finish and complete
the same, and the several cuts and other works au-
thorised to be made and done ; they were also em-
powered to raise 225,000/. for carrying on and
completing the said canal and works. And another
act was passed in the 38 Geo. III. for confirming
and carrying into execution certain articles of agree-
ment with eight land-owners, as is more particularly
therein mentioned.

And the said company are empowered to make,
build, and- erect wharfs, quays, market-houses, ware-
houres, weighing-beams, cranes, engines, machines^
and other works, ways, roads, and conveniencies, at
Paddington aforesaid, at or near the termination of
the said navigable cut, from the said Grand Junction
canal to that place, and to provide and supply the
inhabit mts of any buildings in the parish of Pad-
dington, and the parishes and streets adjacent, with
good and wholesome water, who might be desirous of
contracting with the company for the same ; and to

INLAND NAVIGATION. 46Q

enable the said company to carry on and complete
the said navigable cut from the Grand Junction canal
at Norwood to Paddington, they were authorised to
raise 150,000 /. more ; and whereas the said company
are proceeding in their several works, and have com-
pleted the collateral cut or feeder from Wendover
to Tring, and have neatly completed the main line
of the said canal, and the collateral cut therefrom to
Faddington, and have also made great progress, and
completed a considerable part of the collateral cut
from the town of Buckingham to Old Stratford, in
the county of Northampton, in which works they
have expended very large sums of money; and
whereas, from the great advance in the price of
labour and all sorts of materials, the expenses of the
said company have been increased very considerably
beyond the original estimates, whereby they have
contracted debts to a great amount, and they find
that the several sums of money already authorised to
be raised by them will not discharge the same ; and
it is expedient that the company should be autho-
rised to provide for the discharge of their debts, and
to be enabled to finish and complete the whole of
the said works, and that the powers and provisions
of the said seven acts should be altered and enlarged.
Therefore be it enacted, that the company of pro-
prietors of the Grand Junction canal be hereby au-
thorised to raise 150,000/. (although the whole sum
of 975,000/. allowed to be raised by virtue of the
before recited acts, may not have been raised) and
the said sum of 1 50,000 /. or such part thereof as
the said company or their committee shall think
proper, together with such part or parts of the said

470 INLAND NAVIGATION.

^um of 975,000 /. as aforesaid, shall or may be raised
by any of the ways and means that the said company
arc authorised to raise money by the said recited acts,
either by mortgage or annuities, or promissory notes,
or by creating new shares, or in any way and nianner
they may think proper.

And, by the first recited act, the com'pany, ia
making the said canal and collateral cuts, were not
to deviate more than 100 yards from the lines de-
scribed on certain plans and books of reference, de-
posited in the office of the clerks of the peace for the
counties of Northampton, Buckingham, Bedford^
Hertford, and Middlesex, without the consent, in
writing, of the person or persons through whose
lands or grounds such deviation should be made.

And the company agrees with the Lord Mayor,
Comrponalty, and Citizens of London, in lieu of
the old usual duty of one halfpenny per ton on all
goods, &c. passing west of London bridge, to Strand on
the Green, or Brentford, to pay 600 /. a year for ever,
free and clear of all deductions whatever, of lawful
money of the united kingdom of Great Britain and
Ireland, and by quarterly payments ; and if not paid,
they have leave, liberty, and power to seize all boats,
barges, and merchandise, on any part of the canal.
And this is deepied a public act.

N. B. This is the eighth act which has passed for
the Grand Juncrion canal, each of them providing
against the prescribed line being deviated from, yet
each succeeding one enacting a line of deviation
.frcm the former ; but these changes do not even
terminate with this act, for in 1803, ^he Grand
Junction company were again compelled to apply

iNLANB NAVIGATION. 47i

to parliament for alterations and ^ amendments, after
expending the immense sum of 1,125,000/. It is
' painful to notice, and I should wish for tne future to
avoid mentioning where lines are so ill chosen, and
the expense so shamefully miscalculated.

River Foss Canal, to amend- 1801.

The preamble states, that an act passed 33 Geo.
III. whereby certain, persons and their successors-should
be one body corporate and poUtic by the name of
the Foss Navigation Cotnpany, and wipre authorised
to make and complete a canal navigable for boats,
barges, and other vessels, from, the junction of the
river Foss with the river Ouse, at or near the city of
York^to Stillington mill near theturnpike road lead-
ing from York to Helmsley Blackmoor, in the course
and direction described in p|ans and a book of
reference of the intended canal, which are deposited
with the clerk of the peace for the North Riding of
Yorkshire and the pity pf York. And the said com-
pany wbrc empowered to raise among themselves the
sum of 25,400/. and if that sum was found insuffi-
cient they might raise 10,000/. more, to be divided
into sbar^ of lOQ/. each« and no proprietor should
have less than one share, nor more than 20 sharps ;
and if the said ootppany did not raise the last suni
of 10,000/. among themselves by subscription, they
were empowered to borrow it on mortgage ; and the
company have proceeded in making and completing
certain parts of the said navigation and draii^age^ and
ether works authorised by the said act, and have
cipended the whole of the 25,400/. and a further/
6uia which they have been enabled to borrow as part
Cif the lO^OOO/. and have also incurred sundry deb ts^,

Afi IKLAN0 KAVIGATIOK.

as well for lands as fot materials, uten^ls, and impk*
ments used in the prosecution of the said undertaking,
find are now greatly in arrears to mortgagees for in*
tcrest, and have attempted and endeavoured to bor^
row the residue of the iO^CXK)/. but have not been
able to procure it ; and the creditbrs are very pressing
for principal and interest, and several of them have
given notice of enforcing payment o£ their demands
by law ; and the said company, unless they are among
themselves enabled to raise, and to enforce the pay-
ment of a larger sum of money than they are at
present empowered to do, will b* incapable of dis*-
charging the said debts, or complete the undertak-.-
ing, and uphold so much thereof as is finished, and
the said recited act is in many places defective, and
it is requisite that the same should be altered »id
nmcnded : therefore be it enacted, that the said com-
pany be empowered to raise 10,000/. (over and abovr
the 25,400/. which has been raised and expended)
by a new subscription, or by admissipn of new sub-r
scribers, which shall be immediately applied to the
payment of the several debts and mortgage, and then
for the finishing and completing the said navigation
and drainage, and the reservoirs, feeders, wharfs^
quays, ways, and other necessfiry works and con-
veniences of the said undertaking; and the said
company are authorised, that after the navigation is
completed to Sheriff- Hutton bridjge, and shall be of
Opinion that the money remaining in hand out of the
said 10,000/. is insufficient to perfect the canal to
. StilUngton mill, they may be at their dwn option to
^proceed farther in the v\^rks, until they hav^ raised
pore money to perfect the same to StilUngton mill j
i^pd if an^ mone^ remains in hand unappropriat^c}

INLANP NAVIGATION. 473

of the 10,000/. they may plate it out at interest or
otherwise dispose of it ; but if it should be found in*
sufficient to pay all debts, mortgages, and interest for
which the last sum of 10,000/. was intended, indepen-
dent of completing the said canal, drainage, and other
works, to effectuate which,and to enable them to com*
pletc the whole of the navigation to Stillington mill,
the ^aid company are hereby authorised and empow-
ered to raise 10,000/. more on mortgage, on the cre-
dit of the said navigation and undertaking ; and the
money so borrowed, after paying all debts, to be em-
fploy^d in completing the said navigation and drain-
age, and to no other use or purpose whatever.

And whereas by the recited act, the company were
not to deviate more than 100 yards from the line lai<J
down in the plans and book of reference, and k now
appears that the restriction of 100 yards will ^ a
matter of great inconvenience to the said Foss canal
company, and in order to obviate all doubts, be it
enacted, that immediately after the passing of this a^l
the company may deviate from the line or course as de<^
scribed in such plans to any distance, Consent having
previously been obtained in writing from the owners
through whose lands it shall pass, and paying for the
saoie as the aqt directs, and the proprietors are allowed
to have 30 shares instead of .20 shares, as the former
act Hmited, and may also retain any further number of
shares as may come by will. And the said company
have ^ower to advance tonnage for all heavy article^
aa is therein expressed, l^d. per ton per mile.
And this shall be deemed a public act.

N. B. There do not appeat any private property
(lauses in this short act ; but the usual navigation

47-4 INLAND NAVIGATION.

clauses are multiplied^ yet no more than necessary
for explanation. *

CfiOYDON Canal. ^ 1801.

The preamble states, that the making of a navi-
gable canal for the passage of boats, barges, and
other vessels from or near the town of Croydon,
Surry, into the grand Surry canal in the parish of
Deptford, will open a communication for the cheap
and easy conveyance of all kinds of commodities
from the counties of Sussex, Surry, and Kent to the
metropolis, and of coals, manure, and other arti*
cles from thence into the country, and will improve
the lands and estates through and near which it will
pass; and will be of public utility, and the supply*
ing the' towns of Croydon, Streatham, Dulwich,
Norwood, and Sydenham with wate; from the said-
canal will be a great accommodation to those several
towns. And whereas the several parries hereafter
flamed are willing and desirous, at their own expense,
to make and maintain such canal and other works
requisite for the said purposes : be it enacted, that
(here follow the names of subscribers) and other
persons shall be one body politic and corporate by
the name of the Company of Proprietors of the
Croydon Canal, and they are authorised and em*
powered to make and complete, and keep navigable
and passable for boats and other vessels, a canal from
near the town of Croydon through the parishes of ,
Croydon, Battersea, Camberwell, Deptford, and
Rotherhithe, and of Beckenham and Lewisham, and
the township of Sydenham, into the grand Surry
canal in Deptford parish, and also to make and lay
aqueducts^ pipcs^ and other conveniences^ above or

WLAND NAVIGATIOIT. 475

tin dcT ground, from the said canal to Croj^don, Strca-
tham, Dulwich, Sydenham, and Norwood, in tiiC'
lines and directions expressed in the plan hereafter
mentioned ; and the said company are hereby folly
empowered at all times, for ever after the canal
shall be made, to supply it with water from the
grand Surry cana^, and to make feeders, tunnels,
and shaft?, as also stop-gates, weirs, engines, steam-
engines and other machines for supplying the said
canal and aqueducts, as the said company shall
think proper.

And the said company are hereby allowed to make
a deviation of the canal from the line in the plaa
near New Cross, as is therein particularly mentioned,
and shall not on any pretence suffer water to he taken
or diverted from the water-course which rises in the
parish of Croydon, and joins the river .Wandle
near Merton mills, nor any water whatever from the
said river Wandle ; but both water-course a;id
river, where 'the same shall or may be crossed by the
canal or aqueducts, shall be well and effectually lun**
Belled and conducted under the said canal, aque*
ducts, or other works, so as the whole of the said
water- course or stream may continue to flow into the
river Wandle as usual.

And it is also enacted, that in making the said
canal from at or near Croydon to Selhurst Wood,
the sanne shall not be cut more than 3 feet below the
mean level of the highest part of Croydort common
on the line of the canal, and that the surface of the
water in the said canal shall be for ever maintained
to be tw6 feet above the said mean level (making
the entire depth 5 feet) subject to after regulations.

476 , INLAND NAVIGATION.

And it is further enacted^ that a pipe of sufEcient
dimensions to be capable of conveying away from
the canal into the river Wandle, half the quantity of
water which the steam engine or any other machine
may raise into the summit level, during the time the
water therein shall be more than J 6^ inches lower
than the full height, shall be fixed at or near the
bottom of the canal, so as to open for the lowering of
the water, and to let out the water therefrom whenever
its surface shall be more than \6\ inches below the
high water mark, which is t(t be fixed and main-
tained at the height of 2 feet above the mean level
of Croydon common, as before mentioned, and the
company shall not bore lower than 3 feet deep on
the highest part of Croydon common, in any part of
>the line of the canal, from its commencement at
.Croydon, for the length of 2,500 yards, so as to
.divert the springs that rise on the same, but what-
ever excayation may be wanted for the purpose of
obtaining earth for embankment^ the bottom of such
jexcavation ^hall decline towards the river Wandle,
iuid be made at least one foot deeper than the bot-r
torn of the said canal.

And be it further enacted, that nothing herein
contained shall authorise or empower the company to
take any water for the use of the said canal or other
works hereby authorised to be made out of or from
.the river Ravensbourne, or any stream, water-course,
pr rivulet running into that river.

And whereas a survey has been made to ascer*
tain the practicability of making the said canal and
aqueducts, and a plan with a book of reference
has been made in consequence thereof to shew the
line of the canal, inclined planes, and aqueducts.

INLAND NAVIGATION; 477

and they are made in three parts, which are depo-
sited -with the clerks of the peace for Surry and
Kent, and another with the clerk of the company,
that line is not to be deviated from without the-
consent of the land-owner or occupier, except between
Selhurst Wood to the first inclined plane, as it may
be found necessary to raise the level of the said canal
there, for which reason it may be found necessary to
deviate from the origmal line on the north side there-
of, but not to exceed 200 yards. The lands to be
taken and used for making the said canal, towing-
paths, ditches, drains, and fences not to exceed 30
yards in breadth, except where docks, basins, or
pens of water may be made, or where the said canal
shall be raised higher or cut more than six feet below
the present surface of the land, and except where
boats, barges, and other vessels are to turn, lie, or
pass each other, or where warehouses, cranes, or weigh
beams may be erected, or where wharfs may be set
out for receiving or delivery of goods, wares, and
merchandise which shall be conveyed on the said
navigation, and not above 100 yards in breadth at
any place without consent of the owners. The pre-
sent engineers to settle all differences that may occur,
and fix the heights, levels, and water marks, are :
John Rennie and Ralph Dodd, and if they disagree
or refuse to act, they are to chuse another or an
umpire within three calender months after passing
the act; and the basin, wharfs, warehouses, and other
conveniences of the Croydon canal shall be made on
the east side of the grand Surry canal, and on the
south side of the basin intended to be made and
already staked out for the grand Surry canal, and
not within 100 jards of the said last mentioned basin i

478 INLAND NAVIGATIOIfy

and such basin, wharfs, warehouses, and dthcr coii^
vcni'encies so to be erected by the said company
of proprietors of the said Croydon canal, shall be used
exclusively for the trade of the same.

And it is further enacted, that the said company
may raise among themselves 50,000/. towards mak-
ing and maintaining the said canal, aquediTcts, and
other requisite works, and to be divided into shares
of i GO /. each ; and no proprietor to have less than
one or more than five shares, unless they come by
will- or ro irriage, and to be personal estate ; and
every person to have a vote for every share, not ex-
ceeding five shares, either personally or by proxy ;
and if that sum should be found insufficient ta com-
plete fhe said canal and works, the company arc
empowered to raise the further sum of 30,000/.
by the old subscribers, or by creating new aduiissioiv
shares, or mortgage.

And it is further enacted, that the company shall
pay to the Lord Mayor, Commonalty, and Citizens
of London, their successors, collectors, or assigns for
ever, an annual rent of 40 1, as a compensation for
the diminution of tolls or duties, created and made
payable by an act of the 17 Geo. III. to take tolls
on the Thames westward of London bridge, within
the liberties of the city of London, for the improve-
ment of the river Thames, and to be paid half-yearly,
at Lady-day and Michaelmas, yearly and every year
for ever. And this to be taken and deemed a pub-
lic act.

N. B. This is an exceeding long act, containing
127 clauses, many of which are to secure orivate
property, and the usual clauses in all canal ^ts are
multiplied exceedingly ; a vast sum is allowed to be

INLAND NA\'IGATION. 47Q

taised to complete the navigation^ but not having
the advantage of any manufacturing towns, coal-
mines, or any mines of minerals, -or heavy articles tp
take to a market, I hope I shall be disappointed in
my conjecture in fearing that it will never pay a
proper interest for the money.

Ellesmere Canal, to amend. 1802.

The preamble states, that an act passed in the
83 Geo. III. for making a navigable canal from the
river Severn, at Shrewsbury, to the river Mersey, at
Netherpool, in Cheshire, and making certain col-
lateral cuts from the said canal, whereby certain per-
sons therein named, together with other persons,
were united into one body corporate, by the name
of The Company of Proprietors of the Ellesmere
Canal, and were authorised to make and complete
a canal navigable for boats, barges, and other vessels
from out of the river Severn, at Shrewsbury, to unite
with the river Mersey, at Netherpool ; and also to
make and complete several collateral cuts to branch
from and out of the said canal ; and the said com-
pany were authorised to raise the sum of v 400,000 /.
and if that sum was insufficient, to raise 50,000 /•
more ; and in case the company should have occasion
for any further sum, not exceeding 50,000/. in
addition to the said sums of 450,000/. it may
be raised by mortgage of the said undertaking.
And by another act passed in the 36 Geo. III. to
amend the last recited act, and also ' for making and
maintaining certain cuts, and for varying and altering
the Whitchurch line, and extending the same from
FrancktOQ common to Sherryman*s bridge, and for
making and maintaining several other branches and

480 INLAND NAVIGATION.

collateral cuts to communicate therewith, the com-
pany were authorised to vary and alter the line of thcr
said canal and cuts; between Pranckton common
and Whitchurch, as in the same act mentioned, and
to make and extend several new branches to com-
municate therewith. And another act passed in the
same year of 36 Geo. III. to amend and explain the
last and former recited acts, and to make, vary,
and alter certain parts of the course of the canal and
cuts, between Ruabon and Chester, and for extend-
ing the samCi and for making and completing several
other branches and collateral cuts to communicate
therewith. Another act was likewise obtained
in the 41 Geo. III. to authorise the company of
proprietors 'of the Ellesmere canal to extend the stftd
canal from the Whitchurch branch thereof, at the
New Mills, in the parish of Whitchurch, to com-
municate with the Chester canal, in the township of
Stoke, in the parish of Acton, in Cheshire, and for
altering and amending the several acts passed for
making the said Ellesmere canal to communicate with
the several branches before specified.

And whereas the making of that part of the said
canal between Pont Cysyhee and the upper end of the
said Cegedog Valley, will be attended with a very
considerable expense, and it is reasonable that the
said company should, if they make and maintain the
same, be authorised to have, receive, and take the
like rates of tonnage and wharfage oh and upon the
banks thereof, as they are by the acts of 33 Geo.
III. to take and receive for coals, coak, culm, srone,
lime, .lime-stone, timber, and other goods and mer-
chandise, matters and things, which shall be carried
and conveyed upon any othei^ part of tlie said canal

INLAND NAVIGATION. 481

and cuts therein mentioned ; and whereas shares to
a considerable amount of the sum of 400,000/.
which were intended to be originally subscribed by
the said company among themselves for the pur-
poses of the said undertaking, were reserved for the
land-owners through whose lands the canal and cuts
were authorised to pass, some of which land-owners
have failed and declined to accept the shares so
resen'-ed for them as aforesaid, or to pay the calls
or subscriptions thereon, by reason whereof, and
the insolvency of some other of the original sub-
scribers, the amount of the present stock of the said
company is reduced to 333,000/. the greatest part
whereof hath been expended in the prosecution of
the said undertaking ; and whereas the whole of the
sum of 400,000/. intended to have been originally
raised among themselves, will be necessary for com-
pleting the said canal, branches, and cuts, and the
several works by the said recited acts authorised -to
be made and executed, and it is absolutely necessary
that the company be authorised to raise so much
money as to make up the stock of 400,000 /.as first
intended to have been contributed, or by mortgages,
of two 50,000/. and the company have completed
a considerable part of the said canal and collateral
cuts, but the powers in the said acts are found to be
defective, and it is requisite the same should be
altered and amended : Therefore be it enacted, that
from and after the company have made and exe-
cuted the last-mentioned part of the canal, between
Pont Cysvltee, and the upper end of. the Cegedo^
Valley, near Bnimbo, in the county of Denbigh,
they shall be empowered ro take the same rates of ton-

1 1

482 INLAND NAVIGATIOJ^.

nagcand wharfage upon ihe banks thereof, that they
take on other parts of the canal and the collateral cuts
therein mentioned.

And be it further enacted, that the said company
are hereby empowered to raise G7 ,0C0/. in addition
to the 333,000 /. already raised, to make up the sum
of 4v)0,000/. as originally intended to be raised,
either on interest or by creating new or additional
shares, and disposing of them at such price as they
shall think proper; and which shares shall be entitled
to the same j>Ovvers, privileges, and advantages, and
liable to the same restrictions, penalties, and for-
feitures as the original shares first created. And this
shall be taken and deemed a public act.

N. B. This being the fifth application to parlia-
ment from the proprietors of this canal, and the great
caution taken to preserve its cuts and branches,
prove its utility and value, not only to the company
but to the nation in general.

Trent and Mersey Canal, to alter and

AMEND. 1802.

The preamble states, that by an act passed in the
6 Geo. III. certain persons therein named were
united into a body politic and corporate, by the
name of The Company of Proprietors of the Na-
vigation from the Trent to the Mersey, with power
and authority, at their own costs and charges, to
make and complete a navigable cut or canal passable
for boats, barges, and other vessels, from the river
Trent, below Wilden Ferry, in the county of Derby,
to the river Mersey, near Runcorn Gap, and several
commissioners were then appointed by the said act

iKtAND NAVlCJATIOif. 483

(bf putting the several powers thereby vested in them
into execution ; and whereas several additions, alter-
ations, and amendments were made by the several
acts of lOth, 15th, l6th, 23rd, & 37th Geo. III.
all of which now require amendments and alterations:
Therefore be it enacted, that from and after the pas-
sing of this act, the said company shall make and
complete a rail-way from the canal at Stoke-upon-
Trent, to Lane End ; and another rail-way from the
said canal at Etruria, to Hanley ; and also another
rail- way from the said canal at Dale Hall, to Burs-
lem, in the county of Stafford, for the passage of
waggons and carriages of different forms and con-
structions, and with burthens suitable to sych rail-
ways, to be approved of by the said company, and
also to alter and vary the course of the rail-way from
Froghall to Caldon, and a part of the said proposed
canal from Froghall to Uttoxeter, near Alveton Mill,
in the said county, and to do and perform all things
necessary for making, perfecting, and completing
these proposed rail-ways and other works ; and a plan
of the line described for the rail-ways, and book of
reference, are deposited with the clerk of the peace
for the county of Stafford, which is not to be deviated
from without the land-owners' consent in writing.

And whereas the said company, by an act of 6 Geo.
III. were empowered to raise 130,000/. to be di-
vided into shares of 200/. each ; and whereas it
would be much more convenient to the company
if the said 650 shares of 200 /. each, were divided
into 1,300 shares of lOO/. each: Be it therefore
enacted, that the said 650 shares of 200 /. each, shall
be, and the same are hereby divided into 1,300 equal
shares^ or parts, and that no person^ or body politic

112

4 84 INLAND NAVIGATION.

or corporate, now or hereafter becoming a proprietor,
shall have less than one or more than 50 shares,
or vote personally or by proxy for more than iOO
shares. And this shall be taken and deemed a pub-
lie act.

N. B. It appears by this short act that after re-
citing the seven former acts, they had overlooked the
particulars of the rail-ways, which wanted expla-
nation ; and their finishing the undertaking without
soliciting more money, as also their dividing the
200 /. into lOO/. shares, is a proof of their acting
wisely.

Somersetshire Coal Canal, to vary, alter,

and amend. 1802.

The preamble states, that by an act passed in the
34 Geo. III. certain persons and their successors
therein named, were created a body politic and cor-
porate, by the name of The Company of Proprietors
of the Somersetshire Coal Canal Navigation, and
were empowered to raise among themselves a suni of
money for completing the said canal, not exceeding
80,0C0/. and to be divided into 800 shares of lOO/,
each, and no person as a proprietor to hold less than
one or more than 40 shares in the undertaking ; and
if the said sum of 80,000 /. should be found insuf-
ficient, the company were authorised to raise 40,000/.
more, or to borrow and take up at interest the same,
or any ;part thereof. And by an act passed in the
36 Geo. III. to vary and alter the line of the canal,
authorised by the 34 Geo. III. entitled, An Act for
making and maintaining a Navigable Canal, with
certain Rail-ways and Stone Roads, from several Col-
lieries in the County of Somerset, to communicate

INLAND NAVIGATION. 465

with the intended Kennet and Avon Canal at Brad-
ford, in ^ ilrshire, and ta alter and amend the said
Act ; the said company were empowered to varj'^ the
said line of canal, and power was given to sink the
shares of certain proprietors who had incurred for-
feirure thereof into the rest of the shares of the said
undertaking, and to expunge and strike out the
names of the said proprietors, and the numbers of
their shares.

And whereas the said company of proprietors
have in the prosecution of the said works long since
expended the said sum of 80,0(X) /. first authcTised
to be raised by the recited act, and did, by virtue of
the power therein contained, agree to raise the fur-
ther 'sum of 40,000/. towards completing the said
works, making together 120,000/. for the whole of
which, amounting to 150/. per share, (except 3,768/.
Qj. Od. in respect of the forfeited shares) the said
company have made calls on tl^i? proprietors to the
said undertaking ; and whereas the sum of 104,136/.
only hath yet been paid by the said proprietors to
the treasurers of the said undertaking ; and the said
treasurers are considerably in advance-on account of
the said company, and for which they have agreed
to pay the said treasurers interest, and it would be
much to the advantage of the company and the
public, if they were empowered to alter the Dun-
kerton line, in the parishes of Coomhhay and South-
stoke, in the county of Somerset, and the Radstock
line, in the parish of Wellow, and county aforesaid ;
and whereas the finishing the Radstock line of canal,
and making such water communications, with the
necessary works on both lines of the said canal, will
be attended with a very considerable increased ex-

486 INLAND NAVIGATION.

pense^ of at least 37,000/. and upwards, (exclusive
of a very large annual expense in supplying the upper
levels with water) and they have already expended
considerably more than the original estimate in
making and completing the canal and works ; and
whereas it is just and reasonable that, in the event of
finishing the said Radstock line of canal, an extra
tonnage, pver and ^boye the tonnage authorised to
be raised by the first recited act, on all goods that
shall pass from the upper to the lower, or from the lower
to the upper levels, shall be levied to enable them to
raise money to finish the said Radstock line of canal :
Therefor^ be it enacted, that from and immediately
after the passing of this act, the said company and
their successors shall and are hereby authorised to
vary and alter the said canal on the Dunkerton line
thereof, from or near a bridge over the said canal,
in the parish of Coombhay, in Somersetshire, called
Bl^ck Furlong, and on the Radstock line of the s^d
panal to the parish of Wellow, into the highway
leading from Wellow tq Twinnoe, in the coimly
aforesaid ; ^nd to impose such additional tonnage as
may be necessary, A plan and book of reference of all
the intended cuts, lines, and variations, are deposited
with the cl^rk of the peace for Soipersetshirc, and
with thie clerk of the company, and not to deviate
from the line so laid down above 100 yards ; and
the powers of al] former jicts to be extended to
this act.

And the said company are hereby authorised and
empowered to raise a further sum of 20,0OO /. over
and above the 1 20,000 /. as expressed in the first
recited act ; and it is first to be applied in paying the
dpbts owing by the con^pany, apd afterward? for
finishing and completing the said canal navigation

INLAND NAVIGATION. 48/

and works, ancj in executing the several purposes of
the said recited act, and this act ; and the said sum
of 20,000/. may be raised on notes of 50/. or lOO/.
each, at six years, bearing lawful interest, or on mort-
gage or annuities.

And for the purpose of raising money to finish the
Eadstock line of canal, and to effect and maintain
a water communication by means of locks or other-
wise^ between the upper and lower levels on both
lines of the Somersetshire coal canal, and to erect
steam-engines, and other necessary works, and also
to purchase Dunkerton Mill : Be it further enacted,
that over and above the said sum of J 20,000/. by
the first recited act, and '20,000 /. by this act au-
thorised to be raised as aforesaid, and although those
sums may not have been wholly raised, the further
sum of 45,000/. may be raised under the authority
of the same company for such last-mentioned pur-
poses ; and the Kcnnet and Avon canal- company, .
and the Wilts and Berks canal company, are invited
and required to subscribe one third each towards the
sura of 45,000/. as they will receive great benefits
from this latter part of the Radstock navigation, and
to receive all the benefits of original subscribers, by
voting personally or by proxy, and equal shares of
profits ; and if those two companies agree to subscribe
each thtir third, the Somersetshire coal company
engage to subscribe the other third immediately;
but should the Kennet and Avon, and Wilts and
Berks canal companies refuse to subscribe their third
each, then the Somersetshire canal company may
raise it in what manner they think proper, and receive
to their own benefit the advance on tonnage and
lockage, as is her^^by allowed to be taken on the

488 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Radstock and Dunkerton lines of canal navigation.
And this is to be taken and deemed a public act.

N. B. In this very long (/5 clauses) complicated
act, great care has been taken to secure private pro-
perty, and also the property of other canals, whose
trade and interest seem to clash with this; the im-
mense sums subscribed and laid out prove it to be
of vast importance, and there is an unusual number
of navigation clauses, but which appear to be neces-
sary for explanation.

WALES.

Improvements by internal navigation had been
long neglected in this country, though as capable of
them as England. Long had her mines of lead,
copper, iron, coals, and many other minerals lain en-
tirely neglected for want of that spirit of trade and
encouragement necessary for exploring the contents
of the bowels of her mountains ; and although late,
yet she at last sees the advantages of canals, some
of which are cut into the very mountains which
abound in every useful and necessary mineral; nor is
the surface defective in the gifts of nature, for here
is some of the finest ship building timber in the
world, which, for ages in many places has been
decayin.n; for want of a proper conveyance to a mar-
ket. The gentlemen of this country are at last
awake to their true interest by observing the im-
provement of their neighbours on the opposite sidfc
of the Severn, and at last,- by a most laudable spirit
of enterprise in the land owners^ will doubtless be

INLAND NAVIGATION. 48^

successful, and be a pattern for other parts of the
country to improve on and follow.

Cardiff to Merthyr Tidwell Canal.

In 1790 an act was obtained for cutting a canal
from Cardiff to Merthyr Tidwell, a distance of 25
miles : it begins at Penmarth, just by Cardiff, and
passes Llandaff and Pielly bridge to Merthyr Tidwell,
and takes in those iron furnaces which have begun to
work, and where, no doubt, from this easy convey-
ance, that new ones will be erected, as this easy and
cheap carriage to a market for such heavy articles
was all that was wanted. The lime-stone and coals
which before were useless to the owner will now find,
by this canal, a ready consumption and easy carriage ;
and it is to be hoped that this will be a prosperous
and profitable undertaking, and induce them to ex-
tend this mode of conveyance into every part of the
country. This canal is finished, and likely to be
very pi'oductivc, so as to exceed the company's most
sanguine expectations.

Neath to Furko Vauohax Canal.

A canal from Neath to Furno Vaughan has long
'been in contemplation, and application was made to
parliament in \79(>9 and it appearing to the honour-,
able House of Commons that it would be of the
greatest utility, an act was immediately granted for
cutting a canal fnom Neath, in Glamorganshire, to
Furno Vaughan in the same county, being moun-
tains abounding in coals, lime-stone, iron ore, cop-
per, lead, &c. This canal is about 12 miles long;
the rises and falls I have not yet got at ; but it will
be of the greatest advantage to the country in gene-

4Q0 liyLAN'D NAVIGATIOir.

ral, as well as to the land owners, where the rich
undisturbed bowels of the country lay useless for
want of such conveyance.

KiDWELtT Canal.

This canal is the private property of a Mr. Kcy-
mer, who has cut this canal between three and four
miles long in his own estate from the town of Kid-
welly, in Carmarthenshire, to his coal mines and
lime-stone works, at his own expence, which at the
same time enriches the worthy and respectable land
owner, and is of the greatest service and utility t
the neighbourhood for miles around him.

Aberdare Canal.
The act for cutting this canal from the village of
Aberdare, in the county of Glamorgan, was obtained
33 Geo. III. and joins the Glamorgan canal at the
fork made by the jimction of the little river Cynon
with the river Taff, and goes through a beautiful
country parallel with the river Cynon to Aberdare^
being in length 7-}- rniles ; the first part is level, but
the three miles next to Aberdare rise 40 feet. There
is a rail-way from Aberdare, which crosses the Cynon
at Aberdare, and joins the Neath canal at Abf rnant,
being in length 8 miles and a half. Th^ company
have the usual powers, and 26 yards is allowed for the
width of the canal, towing-path, &c. and they are
obliged to make a lock to prevent any floods from
this canal to injure the Glamorgan canal ; and they
are empowered to raise 22,500/. in shares of lOOL
each, as usual, and may raise 1 1,000/. more if wanted.
Owners and occupiers of adjoining lands may navi-
gate boats 1 2 feet long and 5 feet wide for husban--

INLAND NAVIGATION. 4^1

dry juse X)n1y^ but not to pass any lock free of all
rates.

As it was expected and foretold that unusual advao-
tages might be expected from canals in this country ;
no sooner did such speculations begin^ than the emu-
lation of the neighbouring gentlemen and land owners
was roused to a proper sense of the treasures hid in the
bowels of the mountains, and who are now increasing
the useful method of canal navigation to bring those
valuable minerals into use^ not only to their own profit
and advantage^ but to the benefit of thewhole country.

Bbecknock Canal.

The act for this canal was obtained 33 Geo. IIL
and unites with the Monmouth Canal, 8-j- miles from
Newport, and one mile from Pontypool. It crosses
the river Avon, where by a tunnel it goes through
the highlands there, about 220 yards in length, and
passes the town of Abergavenny, towards the river
Usk, and proceeds parallel with that river to Breck-
nock, and is 33 miles in length, with 68 feet rise to
Brecknock. From where it joins the Monmouth canal
it is 11 miles to Abergavenny, and also for 3 miles
farther it is level; from thence to Brecknock is laj.
niiles, with 68 feet rise ; from Abergavenny to the
canal is one mile, and has a rail- way ; also from the
,canal at Cwm^CljwJack to the Wain- Dew coal and
iron-works there is a rail-way 44 miles in length,
and also another rail- road l-f mile from the cand to
Llangroiney, yirhich crosses the river Usk.

The company have the usual powers, and are per-
mitted 26 yards wide for canal, towing- p^hs, &c.
and not to deviate above 200 yards from the line laid
down. They are also allowed to raise 100,000/4

4Q% INLAND NAVIGATION.

divided into shares of lOO/. each, and no person to
hold above 50 shares, unless willed by deaths, and
they may raise 50,000/. more if wanted.

The greatest advantage will arise to the Mon-
mouth canal company by means of this canal, there-
fore they have agreed to pay to this canal company
3000/. in March 1 7gi ; they also agree not to take
for any goods, &c. navigated on this canal, a greater
tonnage than that company takes, and never to take
above the rates allowed the Monmouth canal com-
pany, which were before mentioned when treating of
that canal ; and as this canal goes also through a rich
country in veins and mines of the most useful mine-
rals, the hidden produce as well as the surface will
find a ready way to a market, to the emolument of
all concerned^ even to the labourer who w^orks in the
tnines.

Swansea Canal.

The act for this canal was obtained 34 Geo. III.
and goes from the town of Swansea in Glamorgan-
shire, by Llandoor, being the copper works of Mr.
Morris, of Morris Town, and thence runs parallel
with the river Tawe, crosses the little river Twrch,
and ends at Hen-noyadd. It is 17 miles long, and
has 373 feet rise, that is to say, firom Swansea to
opposite Pont-ar-Taw, which is 6l miles, it has 105
feet rise ; thence to Pont Gwaynclawdd is 8 miles,
and has 230 feet rise ; the other three-quarters of ^
mile rises 3 1 feet.

The company have the usual powers, and are re-
stricted from using mill ^I'aters therein described; and
the brook at Llandoor to MorrisTown, being 1^ mile,
is to be made navigable by the Duke of Beaufort, which,

INLAND NAVIGATION. 403

with the tolls thereon, is to be the Duke's private pro-
perty, and to be called Morris's canal. The ground
allowed for the whole canal is 26 yards wide, towing-
path included, and the company are enapowered to
raise 6o,000/. divided into lOoL shares, and may
raise 30,000/. if wanted ; no person to hold abo\re
20 shares, and it is to be completely finished in 4
years. There are several rail-roads and collateral cues
permitted to be made in certain places, and denied
at other specified places, and inclined planes may
be made and preserved. This canal goes through a
country like the last, plentiful in all kinds of ores
and minerals, lime- stone, coals, &c. to the great en-
richment of the land owner, and useful to the
country in general.

Glamorganshire Canal. 1796.

The preamble states, that by an act of the 30
Geo. III. cap. 82, for making and maintaining
a navigable canal from Menhyr Tidwell, to and
through a place called the Bank near the town of
CarditF, in Glamorganshire, several persons are in-
corporated by the name of the Company of Pro-
prietors of the Glamorganshire Canal Navigation, and
are authorised to make the canal, and to raise any
sum not exceeding 90,000/. and as the company
have expended that sum in carrying on the canal and
its works, but find it will require a further sum
' to enable them to complete the same, and as the com-
pany are extending the canal from the Bank to the
Lower Layer, which extension will be of public utility:
it is enacted, rhat the company may cause the ex-
tension of the canal to be completed, and defray
the expense thereof out of the money to be raised by

4g4 INLAND NAVIGATION.

virtue of this and the recited act, which empowers
them to raise among themselves the sum of 10,000A
on the same interest, and in proportion to the num-
ber of shares they are possessed of in the undertak-
ing ; and the money so to be advanced and raised
shall be applied to the completing the extension of
the canal, viz. for erecting flank walls on each side of
the tide lock to secure the same from the damage of
the sea, for completing the weirs, sluices, flood-
gates and tumbling bays, for erecting cranes and
wharfs, for building lock-keepers' houses, for feeders,
bridges, and locks, and additional sills and securities
to lock-gates, for lining, puddling, and making the
canal water tight, for compensation for land, and
completing towing-paths, and fences, deepening the
canal from the south gate to the sea, and for super-
intending the said works. The several works afore-
said, and the extension and all other works incident
to the canal shall be finished in two years after the
passing of this act, beyond which time no money
shall be applied.

If the company shall find it necessary to raise a
further additional sum, they may contribute among
themselves a sum not exceeding 1 0,000 /. but on
such last mentioned sum the clear profits shall never
exceed 5 per cent, and the company shall keep in
proper books a distinct account thereof, the times
when and by whom advanced, and how the same
shall be applied. And this act shall be deemed a
public one.

N. B. There are, as usual, the navigation clauses ;
and only one private clause in favour of the Marquis
of Bute's lands.

lifLAND NAVIGATIOK. 4^5

Monmouthshire Canal^ to explain and amend.

The preamble states, that by an act of 32 Geo.
III. cap. 102, for making and maintaining a navi-^
gable canal from some place near Pontnewynydd in-
to the river Usk, at or near the town of Newport,
and a collateral cut or canal from the same, at or
near a place called Cryndau Farm to or near Crum-
lin bridge, all in the county of Monmouth, &c.
certain persons were incorporated to make and main-
tain the canals therein mentioned, and the company
tvere thereby empowered to raise among themselves
1 20,000/. to be divided into 1 ,200 shares of 1 OO/.
each, and in case the 1 20,000/. should be insufficient,
they were empowered to raise 6o,000/. more ; and at
the company have proceeded in making the canals,
which are now in a state of great forwardness, and
they have raised and expended the 120,000/. and
have found it necessary to raise the 6o,000/. among
themselves, and 35,000/. has been contributed to it
accordingly ; and as the company having originally
subscribed only 108,000/. for carrying on the under-
taking, afterwards subscribed 12,000/. in order to
make up 120,000/. rateable according to the sums
originally subscribed ; and they also subscribed the
further sum of 6o,000/. by means whereof most of
the company have subscribed different fractional
parts of lOO/. which riiay be productive of incon-
venience in the distribution of the profits ; and as it
is found that what remains to be paid of 6o,000/.
will not enable them to finish the undertaking ; and
as there may not, in the course of time, be a space
sufficient for wharfage and other necessary accom-

496 INLAND NAVIGATION.

modation on the north side of the Pill at Newport,
the company are desirous of being enabled to extend-
the canal, which at present terminates near Newport,
across the Pill, and through certain lands in Newport,
and in the parish of St. Wollas, if found necessary,
to within 10 yards of the extent of the Cinder Hill
and Friar's Fields, and under the restrictions hereafter
mentioned, to the further distance of about i-.v mile
beyond the termination of the canal ; and it hath
been estimated that the expense of completing the
original undertaking, and of extending the canal,
will amount to 44,6 J 3/. 6^. bd. It is enacted, that
the company of the Monmouthshire canal may make-
and maintain a canal from the end of the canal on
the north side of the Pill as aforesaid, and also may-
make and set up towing-paths, bridges, locks, reser-
voirs, tunnels, aqueducts, wharfs, cranes, and other
conveniences, as may be necessary ; and they shall
. finish the extended canal agreeably to the plan de-
livered to the clerk of the peace for Monmouthshire^
previous to the passing of the act, and the extended.
canal shall be of sufficient width to enable three
barges conveniently to lie abreast of each other, and
not exceeding 45 feet broad, and shall not deviate
more than 20 yaids from the line described in the
plan.

The company may raise among themselves, in
manner hereafter mentioned, 34,()00/. which, with
120,000/. and 60,000/. already contributed, will
make up 2 1 4j6oo/. and every proprietor who shall
be possessed of one or more shares in the navigation
shall contribute, when called upon, 16/. 13j. Aci, in
respect of every share he possesses, towards raising
34,600 /. and every proprietor who shall by virtue

INLAND NAVIGATION. 497

■

of such contribution of l6/. I3s. Ad. and of his
former contributions, be possessed of any fractional
part of a share of JOO/. shall contribute when called
upon such further sum as will make up such frac-
tional part a whole share, in order to complete
34,600/. and the 214,600/. so to be made up, and
alio the navigaton, shall be considered as divided in-
to 2146 shares, and shall be numbered in regular
progression, and shall be deemed personal estate,
and transmissible as such.

The sums of 12,000/. and 70OO/. (being the esti-
mated expense of making the rail-roads to Nanty-
Glo works, and to the collieries, and also 500o7. for
the purpose of extending the canal, shall not be ap-
propriated to any other uses, unless it shall be ordered
so by a half yearly general meeting.

The committee of the company may, after the
expiration of one month from the passing of this
act, make such calls for money from the persons
who shall be liable to contribute towards the sum of
34,600/. as they shall find necessary, so that no call
shall exceed 10/. per cent, and not less than one
month from each other.

If the 34,600/. shall be insufficient, the company,
after an order shall be made at any general or spe-
cial meeting, may raise among themselves any fur-
ther sum not exceeding 10,730/. which sum shall be
paid by the proprietors proportionably, according to •
the number of shares they possess ; and the same shall
be paid to the treasurer at such time and place as
shall be appointed by such general or special meeting,
or by the committee, of which such notice shall be
given as by the recited act is required. And this
shall be deemed a public act.

K K

IV).

498 INLAND NAX'IGATION',

N. B. The numerous clauses in this long act for
the securing private property, and allowing private
accommodations to the land-owners, will convince
the reader of the care that is taken by the Legis-
lature of every individual's interest, as well as their
attention to the customs and duties belonging to
government. The immense sums raised, and to be
raised' for this undertaking, prove it to be of the ut-
most advantage ; and when we consider the inex-
haustible contents of the bowels of the earth, and
neighbouring mountains of mines and minerals,
i^hich for ages have lain concealed, it is no won-
der the land-owners exert themselves to comp/ete
this canal navigation, for the conveyance to market
of the ponderous articles made therefrom, and ^^h\ch
could not be sent by any other method : the usual
clauses in all navigation acts are also inserted.

Monmouthshire Canal, to amend. 1802.

The preamble states, that by an act passed in the
32 Geo. III. certain persons therein named were in-
corporated by the name of The Company of Pro-
prietors of the Monmouthshire Canal Navigation,
and were authorised to make and maintain the na-
vigable canals mentioned in the title of the said act,
and the several rail ways therein mentioned from such
canals, to certain iron-works in the counties of Mon-
mouth and Brecknock, and also such other rail-
ways from any of the said canals and rail-ways as
the act specified, to any other iron-works th^n or
thereafter to be established, or to any lihie-stone
quarries, or coal-mines, within the distance of eight
miles therefrom, as the said company shall think
proper ; and to erect and make such wbarfe, quays,

INLAND NAVIGATION. 4Qg

landing-places, and other works and conveniencies
as should be thought requisite. And by another act
of 37 Geo. III. for extending the Monmouthshire
canal navigation, and for explaining and amending
the last recited act for making the said canal, the
said company were empowered to make and main-
tain a navigable canal, from the termination of the
canal made in piusuance of the first act, pn the
north side of the Pill at Newport, towards a place
called Pill-Gwenlly (in the said act by mistake called
Pingwelly) at the distance of about a mile and a half
therefrom ; and to make such wharfs, quays, land-
ing-places, and other conveniencies adjoining or near
thereto, as might be requisite.

And whereas the said company of the Monmouth-
shire navigation have made considerable progress in
the execution of the $aid acts, and have raised and
contributed among themselves the several sums of
money which by the said acts they were empowered
to do for the purposes aforesaid^ to the amount in
the whole of 224,385 /. and the said company find
that a further sum of money is wanted to enable them
to complete their undertaking, and to discharge the
debts incurred by them ; and whereas it is proper
and expedient that a rail- way or tram-road should
be made from Sirhowy furnaces, in the parish of
Bedwclty, Monmouthshire, along by certain exten-
sive iron-works, projected and now erecting in the
same parish, and intended to be called Tredegar
iron-works, through Tredegar Park, to communi-
cate with the canal belonging to the said company,
and the river Usk, at or near the town of Newport,
together with certain branches of rail-way or tram-

Kx: 2

• ^

500 MLAKD ^AVIGATI6^.

road, from and out of the last mentioned rail -way of
tram-road to other places : and Samuel Homfray,
Richard Fothergill, Matthew Monkhouse, WiUiam
Thompson, and William Forman, iron-masters, and
intended lessees of the Tredegar iron-works, hav^
proposed to the said company to undertake the mak-
ing, at their own expense, of so much of the said
rail-way or tram-road from Sirhowy furnaces as shall
reach to the Nine Mile Point, being nine miles from
the lands of John Jones, esq. lying near Rll-
Gwenlly aforesaid, upon having the benefit of the
tolls thereof; and Sir Charles Morgan, of Tredegar,
bart. has proposed to the said company to make, at
his own expense, one miie of the said rail-way or
tram-road, through Tredegar Park, now belonging
to him, on having the benefit of the tolls to arise
thereon ; and the company are willing to undertake
making the remainder of the said rail- way or tram-road.
And whereas it is expedient that the said recite'd
acts of the 32 & 37 Geo. III. should be explained
and amended : Therefore be it enacted, that the said
parties before recited, iron-masters, shall for that
purpose be one body politic and corporate, by the
name of The Sirhowy Tram-road Company, and the
said Sirhowy tratti-road company are hereby autho-
rised, from and after the passing of this act, to make,
and for ever after to maintain, a sufficient rail-way or
tram- road for the conveyance of iron, coals, lime-
stone and other commodities, in waggons or car-
riages constructed for that purpose, from Sirhowy
furnaces or iron-works, along by Tredegar iron-
urorks down to Nine Mile point, near Pill-Gwenlly
aforesaid, together with all such collateral roads, as

INLAND NAVIGATION. SOL

turns out, and all such landing-places^ resting- places,,
fences, and other conveniencies, as they shall find
necessary, and to have and enjoy the like ways, pas-
sages, powers, and authorities^ upon and through all
lands on or in which such rail-way or tram-road
shall be made, in as full and ample manner as the
Monmouthshire canal navigation company are au-
thorised to have, exercise, or enjoy, by virtue of the
recited act ; and the said Monmouthshire canal na*
vigation company are hereby fully empowered, from
and after the passing of this act, (and now reciting
the last tram-road company) to make a like rail- way
or tram-road, branching off from the other rail-way
or tram-road, between the Nine Mile Point and Tre-
degar Park, at a place called Risca, upwards, and to
conununicate with the present rail way at Crumlin,
in Monmouthshire ; and a like rail- way or tram-
road, branching off from the said intended rail-way
or tram-road, between Tredegar Park and Newport,
at or near Court-y-Billa Farm, to near Pill Gwenlly
aforesaid, on the river Usk, below the town of New-
port, together with such other branches of rail-way
or tram-road, from out of the said intended way or
road between Tredegar Park and Newport, as may
be found expedient, unto the difterent wharfs between
Pill and Newport, and with all such collateral roads
as turns out, and all such resting- places, landing-
places, fences, and other conveniencies, as the said
company shall find necessary or expedient to propiote
the carriage and conveyance of goods thereon.

And the said rajl-ways pf tram-rpads to be mad^
by Sir Chiirles Morgan through Tredegar Park, and
the tram-road to be made by the Sirhowy tram-road
Cpmpany, shall be completely finished by the agth

502 XJSrLAKD NATIGATIOK. •

of September, 1803, and the Monmomhsbire canal
company arc engaged to completely finish their part
of the tram-road, agreed to be done by them, by
the 29th of September, 1803, and to keep the same
in repair for ever, or the act to be void.

And the said Sirhowy tram-road company awi
hereby authorised,.. with the consent of his Grace tht
Duke of Beaufort, to make and maintain a rail-way
or tram-road, branching off from the said rail-way
or tram-road at or . near Tredegar iron-works, unto
the lime-stone rock or quarry at Tr^vil, in the parish
of Llangunider,.in Brecknockshire, and also a rail-
way or tram-road branching off from the same a(
. Kantybwch^ . unto the union iron-works in Rumney,
in the same parish, .together with such collateral
roads as turns put, and other conveniencies ; and
maps, or plans, and books of reference, with the
line of the different rail-ways or tram roads, arc de-
posited with the . clerks of the peace for the counties
of Monmouth and Brecknock, and with the clerk of
the company, which are not to be deviated from more
than 200 yards ; and both the said companies may
make wharfs, and build warehouse cranes, weigh-
ing-beams, engines, or other works, on any land or
place they shall , deem necessary and expedient, and
enter with workmen to keep the same in repair,
making satisfaction for the same.

And wliere^Sithe sum pf 213,700/. part of the
said sum of 224,335 /. in the former acts mentioned,
have been divided into 2,137 shares, of lOO/. each,
and the sum pf 10,685/. residue of the sum of
224,385/. h^vidg been contributed by the propri-
etors of the said 2,137 shares, in proportion to their
number, of shares, .^uch 2,137 shares became in-

INLAND NAVIGATION. ^^

c?«eased to 105 /. each, and it is expedient that the
shares iii the said undertaking should consist only of
JOO/. each : -Be it enacted, that the additional sums »
of 5/. each shall, as soon as conveniently may be
after the passing of this act, be deducted and taken
from the said 2,13/ shares, so as to reduce the same
to 100/. each; and that the several sums of 5/.
shall be thrown together, and formed into additional
shares in the said undertaking of 100 /. each, so £ar
as the same will extend.

And in order to .enable the Monmouthshire canal
company to complete their original ^undertaking, as
also to make the rail-ways or tram-roads, ai\d other
works, and to discharge the debts incurred by them;
Be it enacted, that. the said company may raise the
«um of 50,000 /. more, by new subscriptions by one
•or more sums of lOO/. each, and to be entitled to all
the profits and advantages as original subscribers ;
-or the whole or 4ny part of the 50,000y, may be
^ised on mortgage : and tlve Sirhowy company
agree to pay 1 10 /. yearly for the remainder of their
lease of QQ years, to the Monmouthshire canal na-
vigation company, and the Sirhowy tram-road com-
pany are hereby authorised to raise the sum of
30,000 /. among theipselves, to enable them to finish
the said rt^il-ways or tranjroads, in 300 shares of
100/. each ; and if the said sum is insufficient, they
jnay raise 15,000/. more, either by themselves, or
lidmission of iiew subscribers, or on mortgage. And
this to be taken and deemed a public act.

JJ. B. The very long and tedious explanation
of this act, in 52 clauses, is so complex in pro-
viding for thf separate interests of the two com-

504 INI* AND NAVIGATION.

panics, that it is difficult to cxprclss it intcHigibljr,
and tautology could not well be avoided. The
clauses to secure private property, and to prevent
disputes with the companies, are many and very
long, but no doubt remains that it will be a va^
luable speculation.

SCOTLAND.

FoKTH AND Clyde Canal.

The usefulness in joining the Forth and Clyde
was long ago known, and the scheme was under con-
sideration in the reign of Charles II. but that reign
was not famous for those kind of improvements; it
then Jay dormant till 1723, when it was rem^ed, and
a survey made by a Mr. Gordon, but was again unr
noticed on account of the greatness of the expense.
A Mr. Mackell was employed in 3762, by Lord
Napier, to make a survey and an estimate of a canal,
which should quit the Clyde at Yockef Burn, five
miles below Glasgow, and join the river Fonh about
two miles from the mouth of the Carron river. From
the favourable report to the board of trustees for en-
couraging fisheries, &c. in Scotljind, by Mr. Mackell;
they employed Mr. Smeaton, the most famous en-
gineer of his time, to make a survey in 1764, but
the expense of his estimate appeared too great for
the trade to make adequate payment of the money
to finish the work.

Two gentlemen, Mr. Watt and Mr. Mackell,
were now employed to contrive a small canal from
Giasgoyir to the river Forth. Their survey and esti-

INLAND KAVIOATIOH. fiOS

mate were published in 1767* The country land-
owners and gentlemen not liking a small canal to
finish at Glasgow, Mr. Smeaton was again called ia
^ to examine the ground, and to survey and estimate
for a large tanal that would carry coasting vessels
across from sea to sea ; judging properly that such a
canal would increase and create a great trade between
the west coasts of Great Britain and Ireland.

In such large undertakings as these, difference of
opinions must be expected where numbers are con-
cerned, and this was the case of this second survey
of Mr. Smeaton, when it was thought proper, in
such an immense undertaking, to call in other ad-
vice. Application was therefore made to Messrs.
Brindley, Goldborne, and Yeoman, who surveyed
jthe same, and gave their opinion thereon, which was
reviewed by Mr. Smeaton afterwards, and lie so
completely refuted the arguments and observations of
those three engineers, that the trustees and propri-^
etors were fully sensible of his superior abilities, and
they unanimously put the whole under his direction.
A subscription was immediately opened, and an act
of parliament obtained to carry this i^ost useful ob-
j.cct into execution.

It is here proper to give a short abstract from Mr*
Smeaton's report to the honourable trustees for fish-
eries, manufactures, and improvements in Scotland,
relative to the expense of uniting the rivers Forth and
Clyde by a navigable canal.

Mr. Smeaton*s report begins with observing the
great utility of navigable canals in general, and then
observes, that a communij:ation by that means be-
tween the East and West Seas, has occasioned the
forming many contrivances for this purpose in several

906 INLAND KAVIGAtlD^.

parts of Great Britain ; for instance, the uniting th^
Thames with the Severn ; the Trent with the Se-
Vefn ; the Trent with the Weaver ; the CaMer with
the Mersey, and the J^'orth with the Qydc : but,
says he, I am well convinced that the last is by far
the easiest to be completed, both in point of distance
and perpendicular heighth ; and it is remarkable
that, although the country about this place lies as.
high or higher than the rest, yet through this high
ground there happen to be two natural different
passages, both lower than any of the others, and
« both appear equally practicable, and upon ocuJaf
Purveys, it has been doubtful which of the two
has the preference.

One of these passages is from the river Carron,
by the water of Bonnie, through the bog of Dolater,
into the Kelvin, and from thence into the Clyde, by
the way of Yocker Burn. The other is by following
the river Forth, some miles above Stirling, and then
crossing over through the bog of Bollat, into the
water of Enrick, down to Loch Lomond, and from^
thence by the river Leven, into the Clyde, at Dum-
barton ; and as I have, by order of the honourable
trustees for 6sheries, &c. been at some pains to make
proper observations for determining which to prefer
^f these two passages, I shall first endeavour to set*
tie this question, and then proceed to explain the
leading points that occur in laying out the preferable

tract.

From the Forth, about three miles up the river
Garron, to Carron shore, there is now a good navi-
gation for sea vessels at spring tides, drawing fron^
^ine to ten feet water, and from seven to eight feet at
peap tides, which, from the cuts proposed to be made

INLAND NAVIGATION, 60?

; icross the loops, is likely to be improved ; and so
far I consider the present sea navigation to extend.
From Carron shore to Tophill, a little below Came*
Ion bridge, the ground is gently rising, and very
suitable for a canal ; from thence to above Camelon,
between New Hall and Glenfour, the ground rises
60 feet in half a mile, and is more uneven, but not
attended with any great difficulty ; from thence the
canal rtiay be continued upon the decline of the high
ground, so as to. run on a dead level to Castle- Gary
bridge, being four English miles. This tract of
ground is intersected with haughs and burns, which
arc frequent, and will require considerable expense
in banking, aqueducts, and other extra works, yet
nothing appears but a rea3onable charge will con*
quer. The chief single work will be an aqueduct
bridge, in crossing Bonnie Mill burn, near Bonnie
bridge, oyer which the canal must be carried by
arches ; another, but of a less kind, is required in
crossing the river Bonnie, at Castle-Cary bridge;
from thence by the bog of Dolater, which begins a
little above Wineford, the passage is easy, by a
gentle ascent, and through the bog which extends
to Craigmarline wopds, there are only four feel descent
cither way in the extent of two miles, about the
middle of which is the summit between the two seas^
and which is elevated above high water at neap tides
at Carron $hore, 147 feet, being distant from it nine
English miles* On each side of Dolater bog the
country rises high, affording much water on the least
rain from various springs and rills ; but the principal
?ource is the burn of Auchindough, which dis*
charges itself into the bog, and though it now runs
. pto the water of Bonnie, could with little trouble b(?

SOS INLAND NAVIGATION.

turned into the Kelvin. There is a drun in the
middle of the bog, half a mile in length, that is level,
and runs neither way, and which is the head of the
Bonnie and the Kelvin. This bog is more properly
a peat moss or morass, and chiefly half a mile
broad, but contracted at each end to about 100
yards, so that it is well adapted for reservoirs, canals,
and water passages ; in fact the whole bog might be
easily put under water by a dam between the high
grounds at each end.

Prom the summit or point of partition westward,
the Kelvin runs in an open valley for 13 miles,
upon a regular and insensible decline to Garscud
bridge, where it begins to be rapid, and runstl^rougb
a deep channel, confined by rocks and precipices,
down to Partrick, where it falls into Clyde. Of this
part it is not impossible to be made navigable, but
it would cost a great sum to make a bad navi-*
gation, for this reason those who have turned their
thoughts this way, have sought out a new passage
into Clyde, and nature having pointed out two that
are practicable, one by the valley of the AUender,
leaving Douglaston, Kilmardony, and New Kirk Par<»
trick on the right, and cutting through a rising
ground between the two last places, into a valley
leading to Grascaddon ; the other passage leads out
of Kelvin valley, above Garscud bridge, and going
by Canny's Burn, crosses a rising ground, and falls
into St. Germain's Lock ; and from thence by the
same valley as the former to Grascaddon ; both these
passages hare their difficulties, ^y reason of the
ground to be cut through, 30 feet perpendicular
above the general level, yet both are preferable to
the passage of the Kelvin^ below Garscud hridgCji

INLAND NAVIGATION. SlOQ

which, besides the before mentioned difficulties, i$
filled with miHs of various kinds : at Grascaddon,
the ground fells much in a short space, and then the
passage is easy to the Yocker burn, which discharges
itself into the Clyde, nearly opposite Benfield, and
a little above a place called the Barns of Clyde ;
from hence downwards, the Clyde is navigable at all
tides, with any vessels that can be expected to na-
vigate upon the intended canal, which vessels I
would propose to be such as may be able occasionally -
to go from Port Glasgow or Greenock to Leith.

From the point of partition of the waters in Do-
later bog to the Barns of Clyde, by the course of
the canal, is 1 8 miles, English measure, so that 27
miles is the whole length.

I shall omit describing the passage by the way of
Loch Lomond, and only notice the difference of
length, rises and falls of water, and expense, which
is the reason of the other being preferred to this.

The passage by Loch Lomond measures by the
course of rivers, &c. from Dumbarton through Loch
Lomond to Alloa, near Stirling, by the loops of the
rivers, 73 miles, and it further appears, that by the
most direct passage that can be made, it will be 40
miles at leasts consequently there will be a difFerencc
of 13 miles in favour of the first described canal.

By careful and particular investigation, it is proved
that the Loch Lomond passage will cost 2,500/.
more than the Carron passage, that it is 40 miles
further about, and will also be more loss of time in
passing, and more expense in keeping between 30
said 40 more locks in repair.

To give more parriculars of the Carron passage,
ud method of supplying the canal with water pro*

910 INLAND NAVIGATION.

per for the navigation, would be tedious and unne«>
ccssary ; I shall go on without noticing the burns and
haughs, to pass to the number of locks, their ex-
penses and situations.

Ko. of

From Carron shore^to the level of the intended
canal above Camelon bridge, rise ]08 feet,
which, at 4 feet each, require 07

From thence to Castle-Carey bridge the canal
will be on a level, and needs none, but from
thence to Redburn is a rise of l6 feet, which,
at 4 feet each, will require 4

From Rtdburn into the canal of partition is
tl feet, which, at three feet each, will take . . 7

From the canal of partition to Inchbelly
bridge, the fall is 36 feet, which, at three feet
each, requires ^ 12

From thence to the Clyde there remains 109
feet, this, at four feet each, will require 27

The number of locks in the whole is f7»

The above mentioned is the utmost number of
locks that can be wanted, for if it should appear in
completing the work that the supply of water should
turn more affluent, or a less number of vessels be ex-
pected to navigate than I have supposed, then some
expense may be saved by making the rise at the
locks greater in general, and with a strict equality.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 5) b

by which means they may be made more readily to
suit the ground ; it must, however, be observed, that
the highest lock determines the quantity of water to
be used, for if there were but one lock of eight feet
in the whole number, this would lose as much water
as if they were all of the same height, unless an ex-
tra supply could be brought to this lock to place
against the extra quantity.

Wherever the canal is held by banking above the
surface of the adjacent land, back drains must be cut
behind such banks to receive the leakage that other r
wise might damage the soil, and conduct the same
to a common water-course ; and also to lay tunnels
under the bottom of the cut, to communicate with
such water-courses across the same as require, to be
preserved, or whose elevations may not suit to be
brought into the canal; also to make bridges over
the canal in proper places for communication be-
tween such properties as -shall be divided from the
same, and to make gates on the towing-paths be-
tween every fence, and double gates, if required, for
the divisions between different properties, with over-
falls at proper places for discharging the.sqrplus
water, and whatever else shall appear to be necessary,
for preserving the property of every person as near
as possible in the. same state as. before the exe-
cution of this work.

The breadth of the canal is proposed to be 24 feet;
at the bottom, and the sides to be sloped at 4 me-
dium in the proportion of five to three, that is, to
every three feet deep to widen five feet on each side,
to have five feet depth of water, and to be seven
feet deep, within soil at a medium, so that its width
at the surface of the water will be 40 feet eight

51X INLAND NAVIGATION.

inches, and to be made wider at proper places and
distances for vessels to pass each other. .

It is intended to make the canal less for b^ats of
\T\ feet wide ; drawing four feet water, would make
them draw hard, and to make it larger would incur
an unnecessary expense. The locks I would pro-
pose not to exceed four feet each in rise, in order to
save water in working them ; being made with less
rise would be troublesome, on accouat of the num-
ber only between Kedburn and Inchbelly bridge ; as
water may be there more scarce, I have therefore
proposed them to be there only three feet each rist.

I come now to consider the expense of mzking
the canal.

The canal being 1A feet mean width at
bottom^ and seven feet mean depth, with
slopes as five to three, the width at top will
be 48 feet, and the mean width being 36
feet, will be 28 cubic yards in each running
yard, and in a mile 49,280 cubic yards dig-
ging, which, at 3^. per yard, is6l6/. per
mile, and for 27 miles in length, it comes
to ^i6,(532

Extra digging in the canal of partition to
make it 50 feet at bottom, 53,308 yards, at
Zd. per yard, is 667

Extra work in making passing- places and
additional measure for turning angles, we
may allow in the whole one mile Q\6

The canal being A 8 feet at top, allow the
same width for the banks on each side, that
is 48 yards in breadth over all, which

Carried forward .... ^^7*915

"*.

« 1

J. •■/

Brought forward . * • . ^17>91 3 -
makes in one mile 84)480 square yards,
which is 154- Scotch acres nearly, and for
127 miles 4 1 8^ acres, and which, supposing
them to be purchased at a medium at 20 L
per per acre, comes to 65370

Besides what is immediately occupied
by the canal and its banks, land will be
wanted for trenches, reservoirs, &c. &c» which
may amount to 20 acres in the whole 400

The number of locks being 77> &t 400/.
each, comes to 30^800

To extra digging in passing a narrow
gripe between two rising grounds, a little
south-west of Mungulshouse ...•..• 100

To extra digging through the summit of
the ground between Glenfour and New*
hall, above Camelon 100

To extra banking across six haughs, or
hollows, between that place and Bonnie
Mill, at 100 /. each on an average 600

To dn aqueduct bridge to pass Bonnie
Mill burn, and extra banking to the same,
with an overfall to discharge the surplus
water of the canal 1,000

To extra work in passing Seab^g^s Wo4d,
Trannock Bui:n, Acre Burn, and other
haughs and risings from thence to Castle*
Careys bridge 400

To an aqueduct bridge for passing the
river Bonnie, near Castle-Carey bridge, and
extra embanking there . « , 800

' Carried forward . • ^ . ^60,485

Lib

514 INLAND NAVIGATION.

Brought forward .... ^6o,486

Tq a shuttle for taking in water as oc-
casion may require, from Redburn, ,and an
overfall to discharge the surplus water 2&

To two miles trenching in bringing Kil-
syth Burn, together with Shien Burn, into
the canal of partition, which, at is, per yard,
comes to 176/. and allowing 74 L for extra
cutting, with some small tunnels and
bridges that may be wanted under and over
the same, together with a shuttle and over-
fall for taking in and discharging the su-
perfluous water, will come to 250

To building a dam or weir across the
Kelvin, below Inchbelly bridge, with proper
shuttles to draw off the water 500

To building such another dam below
Calder bridge 5OO

To an aqueduct bridge for crossing the
Allender river, and extra embanking there . . 300

To extra work in piercing and vaulting
a passage through the high ground be-
tween Canny's Burn and St. Germain's
lock 1,200

To extra work in passing Grascaddon . . . lOO

To extra work in making a jetty for de-
fending the mouth of the canal, and clearing
the passage into Clyde river 1 50

'To five public road bridges, viz. at the
road from Falkirk to Carron, at Camelon,
at Castle-Carey, at Canny's Burn, and at
Ygcker Purn, 100 /. each 500

Carried forward .... ^64,005

iKtAND iJAViaATlOir* 515

Brought forward . • . . ^64,005

To 21 bridges where the lesser roads in-
tersect the canalj at 75 /. each . * ^,^75

To 28 private bridges to communicate
between lands, making, with the public
road bridges, two ill a mile on an average,
at 50 /. each 1,400

To 1 3 large tunnels for carrying the lesser
brooks under the canal, at 40/. each 520

To 68 small tunnels for preserving \yater
courses, together with the large ones, 3 in a
mile on an average, at 10 /. each . . . 680

To making towing-paths, back drains,
gates, towing-bridges, &c. at 20 /. a mile . . . 54o

To bringing the water of Enrick from a
little above Randeford into Carron 150

To bringing the burn of Ballagin, with
some other springs westward of Ballagin,
into the Kelvin 100

To temporary damages to lands and
mills, unforeseen accidents, impediments,
and works, engines, utensils, and supervisal . . 10,000

Sum total ^ 78,970

In order to estimate the amount of the tonnage
by which the expense is to be reimbursed, I ex-
amined the ga-boats which ply upon the Clyde, and
are capable of navigating that river at all seasons,
and which by the same rule would navigate the
Frith of Forth, between the canal and the port of
Leith, if required, I found that a middling ga-boat
of 56 feet, keel 174- feet wide, and drawing four feet

L L 2

5l6 INLAND NAVIGATION,

vrater, will carry 40 tons, atid this I look upon to
be the largest size that will be convenient for this
navigation. Now suppose 20 of th^se boats on an
average pass in a day in the driest seasons, that is
ten each way, and supposing them to go full loaded
from the Forth to the Clyde, and half loaded back
from Clyde to Forth, they will carry 6oo tons of
goods per day, being 4,200 tons per week of seven
days, 'for though the boats should not work on Sun-
days, yet, as the water will be gathering, the capa-
city of carriage in point of water will not be dimi^
nished, which will be the case although they do not
go regular ; but casting off the 200 tons for acci-
dents and disappointments, and reckoning only 4,0OO
tons per week, that will amount to 208,000 tons per
year, exclusive of what may further be done when
the, supply of water is unlimited ; the lock duty,
exclusive of freight, . would, I apprehend, bear 5s.
per ton, but say only half-a- crown, 208,000 tons
would amount to 26,000 /. a year. From hence I
would infer, that if we could furnish water in dry
seasons for 20 boats a day, that will be water enough,
at the lowest tonnage that can be supposed, to raise a
much greater annual sum than can be wanting for
repairs, and to discharge the interest of the capital
to be expended, and in all probability more water
than the trade will want. But I would not have it
inferred from hence, because the canal can cany
208,000 tons a year, that there will be 208,000 tons
to carry, the price of tonnage therefore must be fixed
according to the probability of carriage, which it is
proper to leave to the decision of those who are better
skilled in the trade of this kingdom, and especially
the particular trade of these parts*

INLAND NAVIGATION. 51/

On further considering the subject of tl^f fore-
going report, Mr. Smeaton is of opinion it will be
eligible to carry Redbum into the canal of panition,
not as an assistant in case of need, but to be applied
in the first construction, the charge of which will
be amply recompensed by the omission of 5 locks
between Redburn and Inchbelly-bridge, . for the
3 feet locks proposed in that district may then be 4
feet, the same as all the rest, and it will appear by
what has been said before^ that the water expended
on the whole will be precisely the same, so that then
the number of locks will be 36 each way, and 72
in the whole.

Mr. Smeaton has conti^sted the canal of Langue^
doc in France with that of the Forth and Clyde, as
follows —

As the noblest work of this kind that ever has
been executed, the royal canal of Languedoc, has
been generally esteemed as not to answer the ex-
pense, this will undoubtedly be made an argument
against the present proposition ; I shall^ therefore,
oppose some matters of fact relating to the French
canal, by way of parallel.

Canal OF Lan6U£J)oc. Canal op Forth and

Clyde,

Length of the canal Length of the canal

between Port-de-Cettee between Carron shore and

on the Mediterranean and the Barns of Clyde is 37

Thoulouse is 152 English English miles. Sea ves«

miles, besides a river na- sels go up to the Carron

vigation from Thoulouse shore and to Dumbarton,

to Bourdeaux above 100 the distance of which by

miles more, so that the the canal will be 33/niles;

518

INLAND NAVIGATION.

whole length of inland
navigation is above 250
English miles .between the
two sea-ports.

Suppose the vessels to
make way at an average
of 1^ mile an hour, the
passage will take 1 4 days,
of 12 hours each.

The perpendicular
height of the point of
partition is 639 English
feet above the two seas.

This canal is navigated
by 100 locks of above
8 feet rise each.

The expense of this
undertaking has been
6 12,500/. sterling.

This work is still in-
complete by reason of the
shoals in the river Ga-
ronne, below Thoulouse,
which in dry seasons
greatly interrupt the ves-
sels ; to carry the canal be-
low which, as the only
remedy, it is estimated
will cost 43,750/.

but reckoning from Port
Glasgow toLeith,the dis-
tance will not exceed 70
English miles.

Suppose the vessels ta
make way at an average
of 1 mile an hour, tbe
passage will be but 4 days
of 12 hours each.

The perpendicular
height of the point of
partition in the proposed
canal is only 145 feet.

This canal is to be na-
vigated by 77 locks of
between 3 and 4 feet rise

each.

The expense of this

undertaking is estimated
at 78,970/. sterling.

This canal falls into
the rivers Carron and
Clyde in the tides way,
at places where there will
be no obstruction to the
vessels proposed to navi-
gate the canal in the
driest seasons at high-
water, and from whence
they may proceed on their
voyage to their sea-ports.

INLAND NAVIGATION. 51Q

Novf if it may be admitted that as great a trade is
likely to be carried on between the Forth and Clyde,
where the sea navigation is long and dangerous, and
the inland short and easy, as between the Gulf of
Lyons and the Bay of Biscay, where the sea naviga-
tion is open at all times, though long, and the in-
land navigation tedious, and sometimes almost im-
passable, for want of water, over the shoals in the
river; the inference is plain, viz. that the same
tolls which will hardly keep the French canal in re-
pair, will make this a very beneficial undertaking to
British adventurers.

In a former part of this work I mentioned a writer
who was still an advocate for a river navigation be-
tween the rivers Forth and Clyde, notwithstanding
every argument from theory, and proof from prac-
tice, of its disadvantages, and as I there promised to
give some account of what this writer said in its
favour ; it cannot be inserted in a more proper place
than the present, but as the publication is to be
bought, and relates only to this navigation, I shall
be as explicit as possible, referring the curious or
those that are parricularly interested to the pamphlet
itself as being entirely locals . yet of considerable
merit and acute reasoning : it is entitled ** Reflecrions
on Inland Navigations, and a new method proposed
for executing the intended navigation between the
Forth and the Clyde, in a complete manner, and at
an expense one third less than what that work has
been estimated at." It is addressed te the noblemen
and gentlemen subscribers for forming a navigable
canal to join the Forth and Clyde, at whose desire it
. was composed, by J. Gray, ) 768.

530 Iff IJ117D VATIGATIOK.

** It must give,'* says this writer, ^^ a ^ngolar plea*
sure to every well* wisher to Great Britain to sec so
much attention 4t present bestowed upon the form^
ing of navigable canals in different parts of thia
island, particulariy in regard to that for opening a
communication for sea vessels between the Forth
and the Clyde, which, although not the most di£^*
cult in point of execution, is by £u: the most na-
tional and most important. This, as it is now pro«
posed to be executed by the subscribers, wili not
partially regard a single town, or extend its influence
to one or two counties only, but will be a thorough*
fare for the east and west coasts of the whole island ;
nay, even for different nations, for it will in a man*
ner bring Ireland and America on the one hand, and
Germany and the Baltic on the other, 300 miles
nearer each other ; foreigners will therefore be sur-
prised to find this an attempt of private individuali,
when the very nature of it renders it an object of the
first national importance. Such, I make no doubt, if
will appear to our legislature, and that if private
funds should fail or prove insufficient, we may ex«
pect to see it carried oh and completed at the pubJic
expense, with the general approbation, -

Mr. Smeaton has, with much solidity and dis*
cernmcnt, given a distinct and accurate detail of the
requisites for completing a navigation by digging an
arti6cial canal from sea to sea ; and if that plan
should be adopted, I am persuaded that the real ex-
pense will be found to differ very little from his esnV
mate ; I propose, however, to offer another method
which appears to me niucb more natural, much more
simple, to be founded on the plainest principles of by-f
drostatics, and which would answer every purpose of the

subscribers) in affording an easy and safe navigation
of sea vessels from frith to frith, though it would
cost considerably less than the plan proposed.

When water is confined on every side it naturally
places itself upon a level ; but if any one part of the
confining bank be made lower than the surface, the
water will immediately descend by that breach, till
it meets with some other obstacle, for its gravitation
always itiakes it seek to approach the centre of the
earth, and its fluidity give's it an easy opportunity of
escaping ; for a declivity in one part affects the whole
surface. Let us suppose a quantity of water of an
equal depth contained in an oblong vessel, with two
sides and two ends, the sides and ends will have an
equal pressure upon them, and were the length and
breadth to be augmented never so much, yet, if the
depth be not augmented, the pressure upon the sides
and ends is no more in the greater surface than in
the smaller ; for it is an established principle^ that
water does not press against its banks according to its
surface, but according to its perpendicular height or
depth. A canal or river made navigable by art is
nothing else, between lock and lock, than this oblong
vessel ; and the same banks that will contain a small
mill-stream 10 feet broad, will suffice to contain a
canal 100 feet broad, if the depth of both be equal ;
and should an overflowing happen, it is altogether
inlmaterisd whether the superabundance of water
escapes by the sides or by the end ; nay, by tha
construction which 1 shall propose, its escaping by
the end is attended with parricular advantages; I
think, therefore, that in numberless cases it may be
deemed labour thrown away to carry canah along the
sides of rivers, at a great expense of digging.

522 INLAND NAVIGATION.

extra banking, aqueduct bridges, * tunnels, sluices,
&c. when, often at a much less expense, and to a
much better effect, the rivers themselves might be
made navigable without the least cause of appre-
hension of any excess of water, as in the very con-
struction of the canal, the danger of an overflowing
may be provided against. The great rapidity and
violence of rivers during a flood, have, no doubt,
been the reasons that deterred the constructors of
canals from risking any communication with them ;
But although a body of water running down a decli-
vity, being a furious giant overturning every tiling
before him,' yet if this said giant be laid flat on his
back he loses all his force and becomes entirely pas-
sive, whatever be his size. If they had reflected on
this principle, they might have easily seen that they
had it in their power, by banks and dams of a certain
construction, to bring almost every river, requiring
art to render it navigable, to this passive state ; I say
almost every river, because direct cataracts and per-
pendicular water-falls must be excepted. Some other
rivers also, consisting of a large body of water, run-
ning down a deep descent, ought to be neglected,
because it could hardly be expected, that the profit
arising from the navigation would repay the expense
of making it.

But that is far from being the case of the two
small rivulets that have their course in this tract of
intended navigation ; they are both very inconsider-
able ; are almost dry in summer, and run very gently
into the difl^erent seas excepting in one place, where
one has a cataract that may be easily avoided.
The reader who has not an opportunity of viewing
this tract upon the spot, may imagine to himself a

INLAND NAVIGATION. 523

narrow valley, ruoning tranvcrsely for 30 miles from
sea to se^, and bounded on the south and north by
high and mountainous ground. The middle of this
valley is almost a dead level for 10 miles, and two
small brooks that rise there form a straight line by
running in different directions into different seas.
The currents of those brooks are extremely gentle, for
the place where they take their rise has been found
by actual measurement not to exceed 147 feet above
the level of the sea.

From this account it plainly appears that the ques-
tion ought not to be about digging an artificial
canal, but about banking in two small brooks* So
far from being afraid of those two rivulets, I actually
consider them as nothing, but regard their channel
as the most proper bed and declivity for the canal, a
declivity pointed out by nature, which may easily
be reduced to so many levels by dams and locks,
and which may be banked on both sides, at what
breadth we please, without any extra digging or
extra banking in their whole course; but, on the con-
trary, offering us great part of the work already done
to our hands. These rivulets, in their course, • keep
always in the lowermost part of the- valley ; is it not
most natural to take the hoUowest part for the course
of the canal, rather than carry it over uneven ground,
which by being too high in some parts, occasions
extraordinary digging, and, by being too low in
others, requires extraordinary banking ? By chusing
the course of the rivulets for the tract of the canal,
sluices, tunnels, and aqueduct-bridges are also all
superseded and rendered unnecessary, for, instead of
turning aside little rivulets or streams, the canal
would be the common receptacle of them all, as it

524 INLAND NAVIGATION.

would be so situated as to receive them all| and by
its construction could never be incommoded by them.
The following of this tract would also be attended
with other advantages, particularly there wouU be
no new division or separation of private property,
and there would be very little occasion for any
change of property whatever, excepting the property
of the rirers and their banks, for though the rivu-
lets are inconsiderable, yet in many places there is as
much land on both sides of them wasted, as would
suffice for ground for the canal, were it even to be
100 feet broad ; and surely that waste ground caooot
be highly valued by the present propriciors. By
placing the canal in the hollow, it would also be
easier to improve the ground on both sides of it,
which will no doubt soon change its face after the
navigation is finished,, and become three or four
times more valuable than at present ; but what is
the most material is, that this tract seems by nature
most fitted for the course of the canal.

As the two rivulets that run through this valley
are very inconsiderable, in proportion to the in-
tended size of the canal, and, as shall be afterwards
shewn, can never be dangerous even in floods, I
would propose that the hollow valley where they
run should be fixed upon for the course of the navi-
gation ;' and I would form the canal, not by digging
for the whole depth, but by two parallel mounds or
banks, placed 80 feet asunder the whole way, even
at the locks, like two parallel turnpike roads, and
raised so high, that the banking and digging put
together should include a depth of 12 feet. In
forming the canal by banking along the coitfse of
the rivulets, we should have, as I said before^ great

INLAND NAVIGATION. 525

part of the work already done to our hands^ for the
.rivulets have in many places formed a considerable
channel^ which they rarely occupy ; in others their
ordinary surface is one, two, or more feet below the
banks, and in others the ground close by the river
naturally forms a considerable mound, so that the
water might there be kept up 12 feet deep by one
artificial mound only. All thtse natural advantages
are so considerable, that I am persuaded they would
render the expense of forming the banks one-third
less than otherwise.

Let us consider the canal a while as extending
from sea to sea without locks, and the two banks
sloping in proportion of five to three ; it affords us a
capacious bed 12 feet deep, 48 feet broad at bottom,
and 80 feet broad at top. This gives us a medium
breadth of 64 feet, which, multiplied by 12 feet,
the greatest depth, gives us 768 feet for the contents
of the canal. Let us now compare this with the two
hvulets, both in their common state and in their
most augmented state; and we shall find that even
in the last, they would be entirely absorbed in the
canal, and would never overtop its banks. In the
end of November 1707, when there was a great
deal of water on the ground almost every where, I
viewed the Bonnie water and the Kelvin, which were
each of them in an augmented state, and, as I was
assured, near double their ordinary size; yet even
then the Bonnie water at Bonnie bridge was only 10
feet wide and ofte foot deep ; and the Kelvin, at
Inchbelly bridge, was 1 5 feet broad, and a foot and
half deep, which gives for the medium quantity of
water little more than 16 feet when the rivers were
Rouble their ordinary size. Their quantity, then.

526 INLAND NAVlGATiOBT.

flowing in their ordinary state, is only about 8 feet,
which is not the 1 50th part of what might flow in
a canal of the dimensions before mentioned upon
the supposition of its being brimfull, and the cur^
rent meeting with no stop or obstruction from sea
to sea. It may, however, be said that though the
rivers Bonnie and Kelvin be really very inconsider-
able in dry weather, yet there is seldom a winter
passes that they are not swoln with land floods^
which raise them above their banks and overflow
the country several hundred yards on both sides.
But let those floods be narrowly examined into, and
the greatest excess of them computed, by consuir*
ing the oldest persons living in the neighbour-
hood, and I am persuaded it will be found that they
have never risen to such a degree, but that they
could be contained, with ease, in the channel of the
proposed canal.

There was this autumn a great flood in the Kelvin
which overflowed the vale in many parts, for a length
of 5 or 6 miles, and carried off some quantities of
corn that was standing in sheaves upon the fleld ; so
great a flood has not happened for many years, yet
by marks upon trees at Inchbelly bridge, it appeared
.that this great flood had no: risen more than six feet
above the usual level of the river. Its spreading
wide over the vale was a proof of the levelness of the
vale, and was owing to its not being confined, for
exclusive of perhaps 30 or 40 feet in the middle,
where lay the thread of the stream, all that great
breadth was dead water, which, if the river had
been hindered from extending itself, would have
been carried off^ in proportion as the flood rose, by
the increased velocity of the stream, without aug-

INLAND NAVIGATION. 52f

menting its extraordinary depth perhaps above 6
inches. This great flood then, when narrowly ex-
amined, and supposed to be confined between two
hills 40 feet asunder, would probably turn out to be
a stream not 7 feet deep ; but the capacity of the
canal I have proposed, which is 12 by 64, is large
enough to let a stream four times as great as that
pass easily through it, as it is well known to those
who are acquainted with the motion of fluids, which
increases as the depth increases, and consequent! y^
supposing a flood twice or thrice as great as the late
great flood, the canal and the navigation would have
nothing to fear from it*

I inquired the height of the greatest floods in the
river Bonnie, within two miles of the sea, where it
loses its name on account of its junction with the
river Carron, and I was shewn by a very old man
the mark of the greatest flood in his remembrance,
which is about 6 feet above the usual surface, where
it was 6o feet wide. But supposing the Bonnie riyer
or the Carron at that time flowed nine feet deep and
6o feet broad, the canal I propose would well aflTord
room for a flood twice as great as that ; there does
not therefore seem to be the least ground to think
that a canal of the dimensions I have before speci-
fied, would ever be incommoded or endangered by
any flood, on the supposition of the water having a
free course through it. But should it be found that
the floods are larger than I have computed them,
(though the cajial would allow room for floods twice
as large as those I have mentioned) it is only setting
the banks 100 feet asunder, instead of go feet, and
the danger is provided against, and the canal becomes

528 IKLANO KATiaATieir*

more magnificent without any great additional
pense, as shall be treated of more hereafter.

As to the banks or mounds, it will be proper not
to be sparing of the expense in their first construction,
but to make them sufficiently strong and thick, that
they may almost appear like the works of nature,
and never after to need any repairs. I would advise
they should be raised at an average 8 feet above the
surface of the ground, and should be 1 2 feet broad
at top, and slope towards the canal in the propor-
tion of 5 to 3. In the forming of them, the very
wideness of the canal gives us particular advantages ;
for four feet depth of earth over the whole bo£rom
of the canal, together with what is dug for mak-
ing the back drains, will nearly supply earth for
completing them ; what is wanted may be easily
carted from different places in the neighbourhood,
as is done in the itiaking of turnpike roads ; but it
will never be necessary to bring it from any great
distance like the materials for roads, because proper
* ' earth may be found almost every where, conse-
quently the making those mounds may be pretty
nearly estimated, from what has been paid for mak-
ing the turnpike road to Kilsyth, per mile, as I
reckon that both the banks together would amount
to about six times as much, deducting one-third
for what is already done by nature.

Were the mounds to be constructed of the size
and form above mentioned, I am persuaded that no
one would doubt of their being sufficient for the
purpose intended by them^ of confining the two
rivers, and all the water that should come from the
point of partition or head source, with the other
occasional streams that might fall into the channel

INLAND NAYieXTlON* 63$

in the course of the canal. But to convince the moat
incredulous, I shall give an instance of a river above
1000 feet broad, navigable even for ships of war^
which is confined by artificial mounds, and whose
surface is above 10 feet higher than the adjoining
ground on both sides. That river is the Thames,
which in many places below London, particularly
from the Tsle of Dogs to the Woolwich marshes, is
fenced in on both sides by artificial mounds, though
it be there above 1500 feet broad, and the ride
during six hours of the 24 is full ten feet above the
surface of the adjoining ground.

History, I believe, does not mention when those
mounds were first made ; but probably without them
there would be two hours less ride at London, and
the navigation up and down would be more dan-
gerous, as vessels might easily be stranded on the
shallow meadows ; thus, though the Thames may
justly be reckoned one of the first navigable rivers
in Europe, it is nevertheless indebted in some degree
for its navigation to art»

What has been done at the Hiames is an example
before our eyes of the easy pracricability of what I
propose for the present navigation. But besides the
Thames there are many other rivers and artificial
canals carried above soil, without any inconvenience
from soakage or leakage, or any danger to the banks
themselves, which by their own weight, and the
moisture of the river, soon consolidate into one mass.
How many mill streams may be mentioned that are
banked on one side ! The river St. John in Nova
Scotia is banked on both sides, like the Thames, for
a great many, miles. The New River is conducted
to London in many places above soil. The Duke of

&30 INLAND KAVIOATION*

Bridgewater's canal is not only rappoitcd m manj
places by an artificial bank, but the bottom of the
canal itself is nfiouitted above the natural snrface be-
tween 30 and 40 feet, and is carried over an artifice
mound of earth of that height for several miles to-
gether. To conclude, the canal proposed by Mr.
Smeaton in both his reports, is intended to be banked
in several places, particularly in a hollow, west from
Camelon, 18 feet deep, and 210 feet wide at top,
where the very bottom of the canal for a considerable
way will run 8 feet above the natural surface.

I have hitherto considered the canal as wirhoot
locks, but having explained the form and size of the
mounds or banks, and given, I think, incontestibfe
'proofs that they would answer all the pwposes ex-
pected from them, of keeping up the water on the
sides without leakage, I shall now describe the lock
that b intended to keep it up at the end or trans-
versely.

I propose the breadth of the canal to be divided
into three spaces, by two stone piers of ashlar work,
10 feet thick and 80 feet long, built parallel to each
other, at the distance of 20 or 24 feet, hke the piers of
a bridge. The space between these two piers form
the lock, by being built up at the upper end 6 feet
high, and having fiood-gat^s at both ends. I pro-
pose the fall of the lock. to be only 6 feet, because
that, added to the depth of water, which may be 1 1
or 1 2 feet, will require the lower gates to be 18 feet
high, which is a size sufficiently large for the con-
venience of working ; and the tops of the piers maj
be built fiat, with a small parapet and a capstan
(camp shot is m^nt) for the men to walk on to work
the gates. If the breadth of the lock be 24 feet,

WtAND J7ATIGATI0K« 531

the two outer spaces^ firomithe piets to the. banks on
each side^ will be 1 8 feet wide each, and it is pro^
posed to shut up those places with flood-gates, 12
or 13 feet high, made to open occasionally, and
likewise to have sliding vanes or sluices. Sup-
posing the flood gates of all the three spaces shut^
and that there is no want rof water at the point of .
partition, or upper source, where the chief of the ^
supply will be collected, it is plain that the canal
will be quickly filled to the top of those gates and
the top of the banks, and if the water continues
to run it will soon flow over them ; but to prevent
that, the sluices of the gates, or the gates them-
selves, may, by those who reside at the locks,' be
easily kept open, in the proportion necessary to
give a free passage to the superabundant water,
without diminishing in the least the quantity once
collected into the canal, so that it would be never
. overflowing, yet it would be always full.

Now let us examine the supplies of water at the
point of partition, or head reseryoir, to see if we can
draw any more use from them than that of filling
the canal, and furnishing water suflicient fpr the na-
vigation. On the supposition that the extent of the
navigation on the canal will require annually, as by
Mr. Smeaton's second report, 5,333 locks full of
water, that by the lock I have proposed will amount
to 61,439,616 cubic feet per year, or 1 68,328 cubic
feet per day; as the canal of SO feet broad has
three flood-gates at each lock instead of one, I shall
suppose the leakage per day is three times as rttuch
as is stated by Mr. Smeaton, or 12 locks full, which
is 138,240 cubic feet : reckoning the exhalations ia
the saiBe proportion as Mr. SmeatOD, ^t one tpnth

MM 2

532 IKLANB KAVIGATIOtf*

of an inch per day, (and that ia a large allowance)
the daily expense in that article, in a canal 37 miles
long, and 75 feet broad, at the water line, will be
122,100 cubic feet. As the banks I propose may
justly be reckoned as tight as the natural earth, the
soakage cannot be supposed more here than in the
other canal, unless upon account of the augmented
depth, we shall therefore state it at 110,000 cubic
feet per day, and the total expense of water per day
will stand thus :

C^bkfete.

Water expended by lockage, per day • . • . l6d,328

Leakage, .... 138,240

Exhalation, — . . . . 122, lOO
Soakage, — — .... 110,000

Total of water expended per day .... 538,668

To supply this daily consumption, there are six
small streams or burns, that may be made to run and
empty themselves into the head reservoir at the bog
of Dolater, from whence the canal may be amply
supplied with water to both extremities ; these streams
are computed by Mr. Smeaton to furnish, during
seven months in the year, 1 ,8425043 cubic feet per
day ; for three months to supply 669,678 cubic feet
per day, and in great droughts during two months
only 254,328 cubic feet per day; consequently, though
for near two thirds of a year there would be a great
deal more water than is wanted for the navigation,
yet during two months it would seem that there
would be a great deficiency.

But that all deficiencies may be certainly and
amply supplied so as at all times to have a redundancy

INLAKD KATIGATIOm 533

of water, if desired, will appear mo«t plainly from
the further remarks of Mr. Smeaton : The bog of
Dolater, he says, to the extent of 200 English acres,
may, by dams at each end, be laid six feet under
water, and deducting one foot in depth for eKha--
lations, there would still remain 43,560,000 cubic
feet of water, which would supply the deficiency
occasioned by the drought for 158 days, or five
months. Besides, at Townhead lint mill, about a
mile north of the point of partition, and considerably
above the level of that, a valley or hollow may, by
a dam not 50 yards long, be laid under water four
or five fathoms deep, so as to form a reservoir, equal
in capacity to that of Dolaten On the south side of
the canal the waters of Bishop's loch, and of four
others in the neighbourhood, forming together a sur-
face of between 300 and 400 acres, which may be
pent up from four to six feet higher than at present,
and brought to Dolater bog. Besides these three
reservoirs, each of which may contain 43,000,000
cubic feet of water, several other rivulets might be
brought to accoimt. He concludes thus, '' that were
ten times as much water wanting for the canal as
what there appears to be, there are evident means of
bringing it, and amassing it without putting any
strain upon nature/*

Since then it is so easy and practicable to have an
ample supply of water at the point of partition, I
would propose that provision should be made, not
only for the daily consumption of 1^38,668 cubic
feet of water, but also for as much mor« as would be
sufficient for turning a mill at the first lock at each
end of thp point of partition or head reservoir.
The fall of the lock would serve for the fall of the

53^4 UTLAND I7AVlGATlOVf

mill; and, supposing a mill at every other lock on
each hand^ all the way downwards, the same water
that turned the uppermost nulls would serve to turn
all the rest, so diat. if there were 50 locks on the
canal, there may likewise be constructed 50 water
mills, if wanted, and without any prejudice to the
navigation. The millers of thOse mills would be
the natural keepers of the locks, and as they would
always be upon the spot, every land-flood could be
easily regulated by them, so as to be imperceptible
ia the canal, some great floods indeed must be ex-
cepted, but such as these do not happen every win"
ter, and when they do, seldom continue above six
or seven days, during which time the naviggition of
the canal would be rendered more difficult. This
week*s loss, however, may be set against the same
time that would probably be lost every winter in the
artificial canal by frost, and the account stands ba*
1 meed ; for in frosty winters it may well be pre-
sumed, that dead water would be incommoded with
ice for more than a week longer than water that has
a small current, and which might be made to ndse
and lower its surface some inches every two or three
hours.

The locks and dams whicl#I propose, consisting
of two piers and three flood-gates, besides rendering
the navigation of the rivulets practicable and easy,
and giving the profits of the mills, might also serve
as bridges, by laying beams from one pier to another,
and from each pier to the adjoining bank ; but it
must be remembered, that the part between the two
middle piers must be made a draw-bridge, to be
lifted up to let the vessels pass. It is proposed in
general, that dvery dam shall serve the triple put-

UTLANB NAVIGATION. 53S

pose of being a bridge, of lifting the water for the
use of the navigation^ and of containing it for the use
of the millers."

The above extracts appear sufficient to explaia-
the plan, and state the principal arguments of tlie
writer. Those who wish for a more full account
may consult the pamphlet itself,* but its being of a
local description, and perhaps would answer no other
place in this country, I thought it unnecessary to
proceed further ; I shall, however, describe his esti-
mate and expense of completing the canal according
to his proposed plan, but in as short terms as pos-
sible.

The length of the canal willbe about 37 miles
from the mouth of the Carron to below Dunbuck-
ford, on the river Clyde, with a side branch to
Glasgow, and its breadth from the outside of one
back drain to the outside of the other, 129 feet,
consequently it will occupy in the whole 452 Scotch
acres ; but it must be remembered, that great part
of this tract is waste ground on both sides of the
rivulets, and instead of being of any profit to the
owners, often brings damages to them, consequently
the parting with it would render the remainder more
valuable.

The real ground to be valued for the
canal therefore would probably not exceed
300 acres, which, at 20/. an acre, is ... . £ 6,000

Carried forward .\..£ 6,000

* Printtdfbr T. Cadd^ in the Strand, 1768.

536 INLAND KATIGATION.

Brought forward . . . • jf 6^000

Supposing 100 aaes more be allowed
for reservoirs^ that at 20 /. an acre,
comes to 2^000

In the length of the canal there will be
four miles required to be dug wholly
within soil, this makes about 600,737
cubic yards of digging, which, at 3d. per
yard, is 7,509

I propose the banks at an average eight
feet above soil, 12 feet broad at top, and
sloping towards the canal as five to three,
which will give for a medium for thick-r
ness 1 8f feet ; both the banks added to-
gether will be 68 miles long, which will
contain l,g68,07l yards, which, at 3d. per
yard, is 24,6oo/. but of this sum, as before
observed, one third should be deducted
for what is already done by nature, con^^
sequently there will remam for the expense
of banking , , l6,400

To 50 locks at 1,000 /. each 50,000

Two abutments on the banks at each
lock, 100 in all • 10,000

For the dams at the ends of the bog of
Dolater, as by Mr. Smeaton*s estimate . . • 2,277

To extra expenses on the Allander pas-*
sage, by ditto estimate , 13,754

To extra expenses in carrying the canal
to Glasgow over the Kelvin river, by ditto
estimate 5,333

Carried forward . . • . j^l 13,273

INLAND NAVIGATION. 537

Brought forward • . . . ^g 1 13,273

For building 80 mills 5,000

For conducting streams to the reservoir,

as by Mr. Smeaton*s estimate 500

For 100 small bridges of one arch, 10

feet span each 3,000

For advancing the canal from Dalmuir-

burn-foot to below Dunbuckford, as by

Mr. Smeaton*s estimate 18,000

For unforeseen accidents 20,000

Total j^ 159,773

. I have already mentioned that were the; canal to
be 100 feet broad instead of 80 feet, the additional
expense for the purchase of land, and the con-
struction of locks which must have four piers instead
of two, and for the labour of digging and bankings
would not be considerable ; for the same banks that
would contain water in an 80 feet canal would do sa
in a cs^nal 100 or 300 feet broad. The whole ad-
ditional charge for a canal 100 feet wide instead of
80 would be only 41,420/.

By pursuing the method of banking, I will ven--
ture to aver, that a canal ] 5 feet deep and 300 feet
broad, excepting at the locks, might here be made
from sea to sea for the expense of Mr. Smeaton*s
highest estimate, viz. 2g3,444 /. which he computes
for a canal 69 feet broad and 1 2 feet deep, dug all
under soil. Every reader may recollect what great
quantities of water he has seen collected in gather-
dams, or mill-ponds, by banks above their surface,
and I appeal to any artist, who shall view this vale.

^38 INLAND NAVIGATION,

whether it is not very easy to form a string or chain
of gather- dams from sea to sea, afTording a depth and
breadth of water sufficient for the navigation cf ves-
sels of 100 or 200 tons. Some canals in this island
are justly matter of wonder, on account of the cu-
rious arri6ces used in their coqstruqtion ; but I could
wish the whole wonder of this canal should be its
simplicity, joined to an air of magnificence.

So far my author, whose merits or demerits I
leave to the discerning reader to judge ; to add an
opinion of my own would be improper and super-
fluous ; I shall proceed to give a short extract £rom
the act granted to carry this canal into executioii^
according to Mr. Smeaton's plan and estimate.

This a<t was obtained in 1 768, and is enmled
An Act for making and maintaining a Navigable
Canal from the Frith or River of Forth, at or near
the mouth of the river Carron, in the County of
Stirling, to the Frith or river of Clyde, at or near a
place called Dalmuir-Burnfoot, in the county of
Dumbarton ; and also a collateral cut from the same
to the city of Glasgow ; and for making a navigable
cut or canal of communication from the Port or
Harbour of Borrowstonness, to join . the said canal
at or near the place where it falls into the Frith of

Forth.

The proprietors are to raise the money among
themselves to complete the work, but not to exceed
150,000/. and to be divided into lOO/. shares ; and
M),000/. more may be raised if the first is insuf-
ficient : five shares qualify one vote, but no pro-
prietor to have more than 1 votes let his subscript
tion be what it may. In 1784 another act was ob-
tained for extending, amending, and altering the

IHLAND NATIGATIOK. 639

powers of the former act, which i$ so voluminous,
that it is difficult to know how to extract the ser-
viceable part only ; but this, perhaps, cannot be more
properly done than taking a brief account from Mr.
Knox's work, vol. 2, published in 17&S.

Scotland is almost divided into two parts by the
rivers Forth and Clyde ; the Forth foils into the east
sea below Edinburgh, and communicates with the
whole eastern coast of Great Britain, with France,
Holland, Hamburgh, Prussia, Dantzic, Russia, Swe-
den, Denmark, Norway, and Greenland. ' The
Clyde falls into the Atlantic Ocean, below Glas-
gow^ and opens the trade with the west coast of
Great Britain and Ireland, the south of France, Spain,
Portugal, the Mediterranean, America, and the West
Indies. These two rivers, falling in opposite di-
rections into the two seas which encompass thia
island, and the neck of land between them being
only 24 miles broad, first formed the idea of joining
them, to open a communication across the kingdom,
and make it useless to go the long dangerous na**
vigation by the LandVEndof Cornwall, and the
Pentland Frith.

This was first noticed in the reign of Citarles IL
as before mentioned ; that monarch proposed a pas--
sage for transports and small ships of war, at the
expense of 500,000 /. but the sum was too much
to be raised in his reign, and the design was laid
aside. The begiiining of the present reign the Earl
of Chatham, endowed with all the penetration and
magnanimity of an able statesman, proposed to carry
the design into immediate execution, at the public
expense, on a smaller sciiie than the first plan, but

940 IKLAND KAVIGATIOir.

sufficient to admit vessels of burthen ; unfortunately
the resignation of that great man^ among other
causes, prerented the execution. .

This scheme, now abandoned a second time by
the state, was taken up by individuals. Nature had
pointed out Borrowstonness *, on the Forth, and
Palmuir-Burnfoot, six miles below Glasgow, on the
Clyde, as the two extremities of this inland navi-
gation ; but .such was the force of influence, that
instead of opening the east end of the canal at Bor-
lowstonness, where there is water at neap tides for
ships of 200 or 300 tons burthen, and safe lyiag ; it was
begun upon the river Qirron, at a mile distant from
where it joins the Forth, and four miles ^bove Bor-
rowstonness, where vessels of burthen could not float
at neap tides, besides the delay and inconvenience
in navigating the Forth^ and the mouth of the
Carron river, from floods and contrary winds, and a
circuit of two miles.

Mr. Smeaton, an able engineer from Yorkshire,
had estimated the expense of four, seven, ten, and
fourteen feet water. Certain merchants of Glasgow
adopted the scale of four feet, which, although suf-
ficient for the trade of that city, would have an-
swered very little purpose to the nation in general,
and it was suggested that the canal was never meant
to join the Clyde. While a bill was obtaining for
cutting the ditch of four feet water, and on the point
of being passed, the east country gentlemen and

♦ Borrowstonness is, next to Lcith, the principal tiadiog towq
on the Forth i Dalmuir is a small villa^ on the Clyde, washed
by a rivulet called Dalrauir-Burn, to the jonction of which wi^th
the Clyde (he canal is fo be oanied. •

INLAND NAVIGATION. S4I

traders took the alarm^ objected to the partial utility
of the plan^ and^ fortunately for the public, obtained
a bili, extending the depth of water to seven feet.
It was now necessary to open a siibscription for
150,000/. which was soon filled, and 180,000 A was
actually paid.

Mr. Smeaton began this difficult business in 1768,
and had overcome great difficulties, and had cut
nine miles, when, on account of a misunderstanding
between himself and the managers of the canal, he
resigned the business.

Two strangers from Yorkshire were immediately
engaged to carry- on the work ; when these men had
completed nine or ten miles, they were discharged,
and Mr. Smeaton called in again.

The work was now conducted upon the first prin-
ciples till brought within sight of the Kelvin, and six
miles from the proposed joining of the Clyde ; the
subscription, and also a loan, being exhausted, the
work was stopped in 1773. The inhabitants of
Glasgow, by means of a collateral branch three
miles long, opened a navigation from that city to
the Forth, and thus the emporium of the north com-
municates with both sides of the island.

After several years experience, the navigation by
the river Carron was found inconvenient, and a new
subscription was proposed for opening a cut from
Borrowstonness, to join the canal near Falkirk, and
in 1784, a bill was granted by parliament for that
purpose.

This work, when finished, will affect the Carron
navigatioQ, though every effort has been made to
shorten that passage : some years ago a cut was
made near the mouth of the river to shun a bed ot

942 IKLAKB NAVI6ATrOV«

■

reach; and in 17&4 the proprietor of the adjcMmug
lands put himself to the expense of a second €3ut^
by which the Carron river is now entirely avoided.
It is one mile in length, and navigable for vessels of
large burthen. Had this cut been made it first,
there would have been no rivalship from Borrows-
tonness, but the whole business has been a series of
blunders and unnecessary expense, in which the
public- spirited proprietors are equally involved witk
those whose selfish views have been so very detri*
mental throughout. The money expended down
to 1783, amounted to 2 12,000 A No dividend has
yet been made, nor can be made, untiJ the debt
be discharged, when it is supposed the expenditure
will be 220,000/. or 11,000/. a year, wV^e iVie ton-
nage, one year with another, does not exceed 7, 000 1.
About six miles, aod those the most difficult, re-
mained to be finished in 1 784, for which Govern-
ment have allowed 50,000 /• from the foifeitcd
estates ; if to this sum we add the expenditure at
Borrowstonness, and the two cuts at the mooth of
the Carron, this canal will cost 300,000 /. or more
before the first dividend, while, at the same time,
the tonnage is rated so high, that vessels carrying
bulky goods often prefer the long passive by the
Fentland Frith.

The dimensions of this canal, though gready
contracted from the original design, are much su-
perior to any work of the same nature in South
Britain. The English canals are generally from
three to five feet deep, and from 20 to 30 feet
wide, and the lock-gates from 10 to 12 feet, but
they answer the purpose of inland carriage from
one town to another, far which al^ne they were

INLAND NAVIGATION. 54S

designed. . The depth of the canal between the
Forth and the Clyde is seven feet, and 56 feet
broad at the surface ; the locks are 75 feet longi
and the gates 20 feet wide. It is raised from the
Carron by v20 locks in 10 nailes, to the height of
155 feet above the sea-mark; at the 20th lock be*
gins the canal of partition, on the summit between
the east and west seas, and which continues on a
level 18 miles, ending at Hamilton Hilt, one mile
tiorth«-west of tbe Clyde, at Glasgow. In stome places
the canal is carried over mossy ground, and in others
through solid rock. In the fourth mile of the canal
there are-JO locks, and a fine aqueduct bridge, which
crosses the great road leading from Edinburgh to
Glasgow : the expense of this mile was 1 8,000 L
At Kirkintulloch the canal is carried over the water
of Logie on an aquedtKt bridge, the arch of which
is 90 feet, and was built at three difTerent operations
of 30 feet each, having only one centre of 30 feet
broad, which was shifted on small rollers from one
stretch to another. Though this was a new thing,
adftd never attempted before with an arch; of this size,
yet the joinijugs are as fairly equal as any other part
of the arcdn^ The whole is acknowledged to be a
bapital pilbce of masonry ; . there are in the whole 1 8
jdffaw-bridges, and 1 5 aqueduct bridges of consider*
ttble size, besides small on^s and tunnels.

The supplying the canal with water was of itself
a very great and difficult work. One reservoir is
above 24 feet deep, and covers a surface of 50
.acres, near Kilsyth. Another, about seven miles
north of Glasgow, consists of 70 acres, and is
baaked up at the sluice 32 feet.. The proprietors
are now sensible of th^it. error in npt furmiirg the

544 INLAND NAVIGATION.

tanal to have 10 feet water, and proposals have been
made to raise the banks so as fo get eight feet, but
this, if practicable, would be very expensive ; Mni
Smeaton^ when asked the question^ answered, that it
would take great consideration to answer with safety $
the probable expense would be 25,000 /•

Upon the whole, this canal, even in its contracted
state, will exceed the most sanguine hopes of the
public with respect to its general utility. The
distance between the entry into the Qyde and
the Forth, by the Pentland Frith, is 6oo miles, but
by the canal only 100. But this dispropoitioa of
distance in a sea voyage is trifling when compared
with the delays, the shipwrecks, the positive and
casual expenses attending a passage by theHebudes
and the Pentland Fnth, or even by the Land's-£nd,
particularly in time of war, when insurance is £rom
15/. to 20/. per cent, while by the inland navi-^
gation it is only 5 /. per cent.

Mr. Smeaton having declined the business on ac-*
count of his bad state of health, or some other mo*
tive, Mr. Robert Whitworth, a gentleman of ap-
proved abilities, was employed in finishing this canal,
which was entirely completed on the 28th of July,
1790, when the public opening of the Forth and
Clyde navigation from sea to sea was made by the
sailing of a tract-barge belonging to the company of
proprietors, from the basin of the canal near the
city of Glasgow, to the river Clyde, at Bowling-
bay. The voyage, which is about 12 miles, was
performed in less than four hours, during which
time the vessel passed through 19 locks, thereby
descending 156 feet from the summit of the canal
into the Clyde. ' It required only four minutes to pass

ciach lock, in which tinae the lock descended eight
feet into the reach of the navigation below, .In the
course of the voyage from Bowling-bay, the tract-
ipoat passed along that stupendous bridge, the great
aqueduct xxver the Kelvin, 400 feet in laigth, and
70 feet high above ithe surface^ a circumstance which
^ivcs jbis gre^at work ^ pre-en:vi>ence over every
thing of a 3imilar kind in Europe, and does infinite
honour and credit to the professional skill of that
able engineer, Robert Whitworth, esq. under whose
direction the remainder and most difficult part of this
great undertaking has been completed in a truly
^aasterly manner.

The committee of management, accompanied by
the magistrates of the city of Glasgow, ^nere the first
voyagers on this new canal : on the arrival of the
vessel in Bowling- bay, after descending from the last
lock into the CFyde, the ceremony of the junction
of the Forth and Clyde was performed by Archibald
Spiers, esq. of Eldersslie, chairman of the committee
of management, who, with the assistance of the
cluef engineer, launched a hogshead of water of
the river Forth into the river Clyde, as a symbol of
joining the eastern and western seas together. This
great event, so important to the trade and navigation
of Great Britain, and particularly to the towns of
Liverpool, Lancaster, Whitehaven, Greenock, Dub-
lin, Ncwry, Drogheda, Belfast, Londonderry, &c.
&c. &c. on one side, and the towns of Lynn, Hull,
Newcastle, Leith, Dundee, Aberdeen, &c. &c. on
the other, as also to all the ports in St. George's
Channel that ti;ade to Norway, Sweden, and the
Baltic, has opened a communication, which will
not only shoirten the distance from 800 to 1,000

N N

546 INLAND NAVIOATIOK.

miles^ but also afibrd a more safe and easy pass&gc,
particularly in time of war, or at the end of the
season when ships are detained long in the Baltic,
and cannot attempt the circuitous sea voyage without
great danger of spoiling their cargoes, or being too
late for a market. The whole length of this canal
is navigable from the Forth to the Qyde, 35 miles,
of which 16 are upon the summit of the country,
15*6 feet above the level of the sea, to which height
the vessel is raised by 20 locks from the eastern sea,
and 1 g from the western. Each lock is 20 feet wide
and 74 feet long between the gates : the depth is
exactly eight feet throughout, and the med/um
width 56 feet on the surface of the water, and 28
feet at bottom. The toll-dues payable on the na-
vigation are 2d. per ton per mile, or 5s. \0d. per ton
for the whole length of the canal, and the time re-
quired to pass from sea to sea, through the 39* lock&,
will be 1 6 hours.

The canal in its course from the Forih to the
Clyde passes over 10 large aqueducts or water-
bridges, and 33 small aqueducts and tunnels, being
43 in all.

There are also 33 draw- bridges over the cana/.

From Grangemouth to Glasgow the tonnage is
As. \pd. and from Bowling-bay to Glasgow 2^ .

Mikf.

The rise of the canal from lock No. 1, at
Grangemouth, to lock No. 20, at the summit
of the navigation, is 156 feet, and it extends in
length.. lOi-

The summit of the canal or head level from

Carried forward . , . • W^
7

INLAND NAVIGATION. 547

MUet.

Brought forward lo^

lock No. 20, east to the point of partition at

lock No. 21, is in length l6

The fall of the canal from lock No. 21, at
the end of the summit of the navigation, to lock
No. S9,in Bowling-bay, is 1 56 feet, and in length 8-|.

The extreme length of the navigation from
Forth to Clyde is 35

Miles.

The extreme length of the collateral to Glasgow 2|.

Feet*

The medium width of the surface of the canal 56

Ditto of the bottom of the canal 27

Depth of canal from sea to sea 8

The fall of each of the 39 locks on the canal 8

The width of each lock 20

The length of each lock, between gates .... 7<i

The canal in its course from the Forth to the Clyde
passes over 10 large aqueducts or water bridges, and
33 small ones and tunnels.

Crinia^t Canal.

An act was obtained 33. Geo. III. for making a
canal from Loch Crinian to Loch Gilp, in the
county of Argyle in Scotland, being a short cut of
seven, or at most nine miles, and is particularly in-
tended to accommodate the trade of the Western
Islands and fisheries, as by it they will avoid a very
hazardous 'and circuitous voyage and dangerous sea
round the peninsula of Cantyre, and may at all sea-
sons of the year arrive in safety and dispatch in the

X X 2

54S INLAND NAVI^ATIQX.

Forth of Clyde and that neighbourhood, where is
chiefly their market. It was not then determine.d
which of the two routes to prefer, being so nearly
alike. The distance by the nearest line is 7 miles,
with a fall of 62 feet and a rise of 6 1 feet, and
this is named the Dell-passage. The other is called
the passage of Auchinshallach, which goes through
the Moss gf Crinian, which is nine miles and a half
long ; the rise is 58 feet, and the fall 59 feet. It is
intended to make the canal from 1 2 to 15 feet deep,
so that large vessels of burthen may conveniemly
pass and repass, and the breadth is allowed to be 1 60
yards. The company have the usual powers, and are
empowered to raise 120,000/. to be divided into 50/.
shares, and no person to have above 10 voles; and
they may raise 30,000/. more if wanted. By this
useful cut a voyage may be completed in three or
four days at all seasons, that used frequently to take
i*p three weeks, and the voyage from Glasgow to the
Hebrides will be almost entirely inland. Govern*
ment will also be greatly benefited by this cut, as
troops and military stores and baggage niay be con-
veyed with expedition and security, between tbc
Highlands and the Clyde, where the troops generally
take shipping for the place of destination.

Another most useful inland navigation is in con-
templation, and intended to be cut between Fort
Williiim and Inverness, and is 59 miles in length, but
the natural advantages of lochs in the whok tract is
so great and useful that not above 2 miies of rei\
land without any river is wanted to be cut. The
rout<e and expense, together with the local and ndtianal
advantages that will accrue from this canal, are won-
dcrful, and well and ably set forth by Mr. Knox and

INLANB IIAVIGAI^IOK* 549

Dr. Anderson, to whoni I beg heave to teftt fot par-
ticulars, as they are too long ^o insert liei^e, as well as
out of the intention of this pUbiifCtitloft,

Abeubbenshik'B Canal. 179^-
The preamble states, that the making and main-
taining a canal narigabk for vessels from the harbour
of Aberdeen through that parish and the parishes of
Old Machar, Nev^hrlls, Dyce, Kinnellar aod- Kin-
tore, on the south side of the rirerDou, and into the
said river at or near the bri-dge over the sam^ adja-
cent to Inverury, all withm Abenjeenihh^e, tt iH greatly
facilitate and render more convenient and less expen-
sive the conveyance of all fcinds of cortimodities, and
will be of great public uriltty : it vsi en^lcted, that
(now follow the narftes of the corft [Tarty of propiie*
tors) and their successors, and afoof such person as-
may have a share tbdfein, shall be united into a com-
pany for making and, maintaining a canal, and shall
be one body politic, by the ndnie of tire Company of
Proprietors of the Aberdeenshire Canal Navigatron,
v^hich they shall keep navigable for vessels from the
harbour of Aberdeen through Old Machar, New-^
hills, Dyce, Kinnellar, and Kintore, into the river
Don, and may supply the canal \<»ith Water from all
such springs as may be found iii mnki^g the samd,
and from the river Don, and from ^11 stfreams M(i^
water-courses wJhich -shall be found within 2000 yards-
of any part of the canal, and may cleanse or straighten
any snch streams or tvarer-courses, and may lay
down* feeders, pipes^ and make aqueducts, weirs,
engines, bridges, tunnels, locks, sluices*, drains,
wharfs, quays, toll-houses, warehouses-, t^ratclv houses,

550 INLAND NAVIGATION*

weighing beams, cranes, docks, fire engines, lad-
ing places, and other machines and conveniences
where they shall think requisite.

A plan and book of reference are deposited with
the clerk of the peace for the county ; and not to
deviate therefrom without the consent of the land-
owners. The canal, side drain, towing path, and
fences are not to exceed 20 yards in breadth, except
in such places where any dock or basin shall be
made, or where the canal shall rise higher or be cut
deeper than 5 feet from the present surface, or where
vessels shall lie or pass each other, or where any
wharf, warehouse, crane, or weighing beam shall
be erected, nor more than 100 yards in breadth at
any place, except at the head of the canal in ^t
parish of Kintore, where the company shall make a
wharf not exceeding 4 acres in extent.

The company may raise among themselves any
sum not exceeding 20,000/. and no person shall be-
come proprietor of less than one share, or shall have
more than 40 shares, which shall be 50/. each, and
be deemed personal estate ; and in case the above
sum is insufficient, they may raise 10,000/. more
among themselves or by admission of new subscri-
bers, or on mortgage ; and no proprietor, although he
may hold more than 20 shares, shall have more than
20 votes in his own right, or 20 votes by proxy.
Marks or stones are to be set up on the sides of the
canal at every half mile. Boats for pleasure only are
allowed, but not above 1 2 feet long and 4 broad,
and not to go through any lock, and the owners to
make a place in their own land for the boat to lie out
of the way of th^ canal. This shall be deemed a
public act.

INLAND NATIGATION. 551

N. B. The usual clauses are inserted as in all navi-
gation acts, besides a vast number to secure private
property, especially mills and fisheries, and a long
explanation of rates and tonnage.

CfiiNiAN Canal, to amend, 1799*
The preamble states, that an act passed 33 Geo.
III. cap. 104, whereby John Duke of Argyle, and
several other persons therein named, were incorporated
by the name of the Company of Proprietors of the
Crinian Canal^ for the purpose of making and com-
pleting the said canal and other necessary works ; and
the company have made great progress in carrying
on the said works ; but the same cannot be com-
plcted by reason that several of the subscribers in
England and Scodand, many of whom are merchants
and manufacturers, have not been able to answer tho
calls made on their respective subscriptions, whereby
it is become necessary to raise a farther sum of
money, on other terms than the company are now
empowered to do ; and the said act requires also to
be further explained, enlarged, altered, and amended :
In order, therefore, to prevent delay in carrying on
and completing the said works, which would be at-
tended with injury to the company and the public ;
be it enacted. That it shall be lawful for the com-
pany of proprietors of the Crinian canal to borrow a
further sum not exceeding 30,000/. (although the
whole of the 120,000/. allowed to be raised by the re^
cited act may not have been raised), and to take up
the same at legal or less intei est, from such persons as
shall be willing to lend the ame ; and the said sum
of 30,000/. the company are authorised to raise by
mortgage, annuity, bonds, notes, or hew admission

bS'it DaAKH ITAVrGJETIOK.

shares, 2cc. And tbis shall be UiTLcm and dieeiUcd^ a
public act.

N. B. This is certainly one of the most usefid
acts for the fisheries c^Scothindthatevef wefepasseiL
Even the Forth and Clyde canal is not more useful.
Had I time or noorfi' to enlarge on this subject I
should most willingly ; and I hope to see it fotiowed
up by a canal navigation friorti Fort Willkun toFolt
George, and several other canal navigatiom in Seol*
land are much wanted.

Abbbbeenshibe Canal, to finish. 1801.

The preamble statesythat by an act pbissedd^ Geqw
III. divers persons therein named, wire racorportled
under the name of The Company of ProptibtOR «C
the Aberdeenshire Calial Navigation^ Md were ao-^
thorised to make and complete th(i said canal as there*
in directed^ and for that purpose to raise and cetib-
tribute among themselves the torn of 20,000/. and
if that should be insufficieht they weife authorised
tQ raise by mortgage, or by admission of new sub-
scribers, 10,000/. more. And whereas only 17, 800^*
of the said sum of JO,OCO/. has been subscribed; and
the company have cut a considerable part of the
canal, whereby they have expended the whde of
the money so subscribed, excepting arrears and insol-
vencies, besides incurring several debts ; and have
also endeavoured to procure the farther sums of
money authorised by the said act, but without eflfcct;
and it would tend to the more speedy compleriort of
the canal, if the said company were empowered to
raise an additional sum, by cteating new additional
shares : Therefore be it enacted, that the said com-
pany of proprietors are authorised to raise the sum of

IVX.AND IfATIGATIOir. 553

20,000/* or so much thereof as shall be Aecessarj for
completing the said navigation, over and above the
money authorised to be raised by the said recited
act ; and that the new shares shall be 20L a share,
and shall receive an annual dividend of 20s. per share,
should the tolls of the canal produce so much, be-'
fore the proprietors of the original shares be entitled
to any shared or dividend- But that wherievcr the
div'idend dhall aitiount to 20^. per. share, on the new
shares, the remainder shall be divided artiong the
poprictors of the original shares, until they receive
an annual interest dr dividend of 50s. per share.
And it is also hereby declared that three new
shares shall Entitle the hdder to one vote, and five
shares to two votes, and so of) in proportion, and
that eight such shares shall be a qualification to be
chosen of the committee of management ; but that
do person shall be entitled to more than 20 votes in
bis own right, and 20 votes by proxy, whatever
ninnbet he may happen to hdd in the new additional
canal stock. And it is further enacted, that the
subscriptions for the new shares, to be created by
virtue of this act, shall not be binding on the sub-
scribers, unless the sum, at least, of 15,000/. is sub-
scribed, or otherwise obtained, for the purposes
of cothpleting the said canal navigation. And this
shall be taken and deemed a public act.

N. B. This short act, and recital of another act,
has only nine clauses, which contain every thing
necessary for information and satisfaction. Here are
no surveys and re- surveys, nor a London solicitor's
tautology, but the essence and quintessence of jus-
lice and economy, and not like one I am just going
to abstract and insert, consisting of 127 clauses ;

554 * IN^LAND NATIGATION'.

but it must be considered that it is the production
of London.

Glenkbnns Canal Navigationt. 180a.

The preamble states, that certain persons and their
successors therein named shall, for the following pur-
pose, be one bo